


Seeking Arrangement

by sweetlolixo



Category: the GazettE
Genre: Alternative Universe - Sugar Daddy, Daddy Kink, Lingerie, M/M, Masturbation, Oral Sex, Paid Dating, Rimming, Sex Toys, Spanking, Sugar Daddy/Baby Relationship, Voyeurism, cross-dressing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-13
Updated: 2016-10-25
Packaged: 2018-02-25 06:07:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 67
Words: 377,981
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2611211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sweetlolixo/pseuds/sweetlolixo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Twenty-one year old Yuu used to juggle three jobs a day <em>and</em> his university studies at the same time. He has learnt now that offering companionship and sex as a sugar baby earns him far better money than any other job. Always on the look-out for better sugar daddies to spoil and pamper him, Yuu finds himself encountering Takashima Kouyou, someone who is just the perfect fit for the kind of man he's looking for.</p><p>
  <a href="https://ficbook.net/readfic/3851311">Russian Translation</a>
  <br/>
  <a href="https://layteam6thgun.wordpress.com/2016/02/26/seeking-arrangement-chapter-1-fic-dich/">Vietnamese Translation</a>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> FYI, sugar daddy!Kouyou looks like [this](http://oi60.tinypic.com/33pgff6.jpg), goodbye

Yuu was grossed out. 

Grossed out of his goddamn mind. The man – a doctor, Yuu vaguely recalled him saying – seated opposite him had been going on and on about a terrible operation he’d had to deal with of late, and frankly speaking, when you were seated in a five-star Italian restaurant, drinking top-notch wine and having high-grade medium rare steak, the last thing you’d want a mental image of was a man with decaying balls.

Ugh. Yuu resisted making a face as he ate the last bits of his steak and placed his fork gently down onto the table, wiping his mouth gracefully with a napkin while he was at it. It didn’t help that the man seated opposite him wasn’t the most attractive person, either – he was about fifty years of age, balding at the crown of his head, and looked as if he didn’t understand what the basic concept of hygiene was. Which was ironic, considering his profession. Though, it wasn’t like Yuu usually minded; to him, gaining his money was his priority, and Yuu didn’t care how these men looked, as long as their fat wallet made up for it. 

It was a business, this sugar daddy dating game, and Yuu was only being paid for his time, to listen to this man’s sorrows and keep him company and make him feel good about himself. That was all to it. There were no strings attached. Yuu was a sugar baby, and he was proud of it. At the prime age of twenty-one years old, Yuu could have opted for other jobs, sure, but after _months_ of struggling with three part-time jobs whilst trying to keep up with a university workload at the same time, Yuu just didn’t think it was worth it anymore.

Not when one of his sugar daddies had just paid off half of his university loan last month, and another daddy had decided, on a whim last week, to create a credit card for Yuu in his name. The raven-haired had made ten thousand dollars total last month, in cash and gifts, and all Yuu had to do was ensure he was constantly looking fresh, young and pretty, as well as remember to set aside time once a week to meet up with them per their request.

Today’s date with the doctor was a first for the both of them; Yuu usually went through ‘trial’ dates such as these to see if they would be a good match or not – or, _well_ , to put it bluntly, to simply see if he could put up with the guy for hours on his end – and Yuu would only agree to future arrangements if their first date went well. 

An hour into this dinner date, however, already proved it was a canonical disaster. Yuu had feigned a smile and nodded simply at random intervals into their conversation, but the balding doctor seemed to catch no hint that Yuu was _not_ interested in hearing about some man’s vasectomy while he was having steak. Suddenly the piece of meat didn’t look so appealing anymore. Yuu felt like a cannibal now, for Christ’s sake. 

Yuu found himself slowly slipping out his phone from his jeans; texting the one person he knew could save him from this distress. 

_save me. help. potential sugar daddy is a fucking disaster. i still have an hour to go._

Yutaka’s reply came quick. He was Yuu’s roommate, living in an apartment just outside the city, and when Yuu started sugaring, the raven-haired didn’t see a point in hiding his work from Yutaka when it would be so easy to realize the true reason Yuu was slipping out at night and disappearing every other weekend, anyway. They studied at the same university, but unlike Yuu, who was an English major, Yutaka was studying in the field of medicine, hoping to eventually get his doctorate.

Yutaka usually spent nights staying up late to study, though with the amount of texts Yuu spammed him with nowadays, Yuu wondered how Yutaka managed to get anything done with the raven’s annoying presence. 

 **_Yutaka:_ ** _Jesus. Does he stink?_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _worse. a doctor. he’s talking about sterilizing someone now. i don’t want to know the details_

 **_Yutaka:_ ** _Haha, oh. I get it. Did he mention the vasa deferentia?_

**_Yuu:_ ** _a vasa- what? oh god, Yutaka, don’t get started on your biology crap. i’ve had enough of doctors for the day._

 **_Yutaka:_ ** _OK, OK, fine. Need me to call you and give you an escape route?_

**_Yuu:_ ** _technically, am being paid for my time. so no. he might not give me the $400 he promised. oh, he’s starting to notice i’ve been looking at my crotch for too long. brb._

“Something wrong, honey?” The man was saying, widening his mouth into a grotesque smile. …Yep. Okay. Yuu was definitely not seeing this man again. Why did he ever think it was a good idea to meet up with men with no profile pictures? Oh, right. Because Yuu had seen the income stated on his profile and the 300k this doctor earned per year was _way_ too tempting. Though, Yuu felt like he would probably pass up on this one. There was no way he would be enduring future vasectomy conversations with this baldie. 

“Nothing!” Yuu responded cheerfully, perking his head up. The doctor seemed delighted to see the raven-haired look so enthusiastic, and took it as a good sign to continue talking. _Ugh_. Yuu rolled his eyes to himself in the back of his head, though his face didn’t move an inch. 

Yuu always felt some kind of responsibility to always look as high-spirited as possible, at least in these men’s company anyway, for he knew they were buying his time and Yuu had to put on a façade to please them. Yuu had to act like the perfect boyfriend. He would have no troubles in the world, would be carefree, and also loved life to the fullest. He would be a pretty young thing who just needed an older man to support him – and the older men who were in his company usually sucked all of it up, enjoying Yuu’s chirpy presence.

This was _exactly_ how to be a successful sugar baby. You act as if everything about them interests you, and lavish them with your complete attention and body. The payoff was well, too. Yuu mentally counted this month’s estimated earnings in his head – he’d be getting at least 3k from an attorney and 1.5k from a car dealer, two of his regulars, and at least another thousand from random dates like these with men he probably won’t be seeing again. 

Well, it was about half of what he would be getting last month, but he wasn’t complaining. His university loan was halfway paid and at the rate things were going, he’d most likely have it paid by the end of the year.

“Ready to go, darling?” The doctor asked, smiling to the raven-haired and looking rather pleased with him so far. He was going to arrange for future dates, Yuu knew it. Yuu briefly contemplated the idea of an additional 2k every month, but the reminder of the doctor’s vivid description of a man’s decaying balls turned him right off.

“Sure!” Yuu exclaimed happily, then watched as the doctor called for the bill and paid for it with his platinum credit card. Yuu eyed it lustfully, but made sure to turn his attention back to the doctor as soon as he called for Yuu again. 

“So, I’ll be driving you home now, then?” The doctor asked in a sorry tone, his disappointment showing. Yuu knew what he was hinting at, and the raven wasn’t falling for it. Yuu let out a sigh; as much as he was a whore (which he wasn’t), he had a policy of no sex on first dates, and he was _definitely_ not going home with _this_ doctor after their disastrous date. 

It was just a trial date, a date where they could get to know each other further and see if they were compatible for future arrangements. Plus, Yuu didn’t exactly want those hands touching him after he’d heard what the doctor had done in those… operations.

“Um, you can drop me off at the gas station you picked me up from, and I’ll make my way home myself.” Yuu politely said, smiling gently to the doctor. There was also a policy Yuu adhered to when it came to sugar dating – never give them his real address or let them know where he was staying. There was no way he was going to get harassed by these perverted old men if their relationship backfired. 

So began their walk out of the busy restaurant to the doctor’s car. Yuu strapped himself into the front seat, and the doctor began driving, dropping him off at the gas station as promised. But not before passing him an envelope containing a thick wad of cash, which – as Yuu carefully counted – contained four hundred dollars as promised.

“Thank you!” Yuu sang, smiling widely to the old man as he left the car, pretending not to notice the way the doctor seemed to be leaning in for a goodbye kiss. As he slammed the car door shut to the doctor’s frowning face and gave one last customary wave to him, he watched as the doctor drove away, before starting his short walk home. Yuu clutched the envelope of cash under his leather jacket, humming satisfiedly at today’s earnings. He had earned an easy four hundred, without even _needing_ to deliver a short, disgusting peck to the old man’s cheek. 

Yuu was _so_ not going back to being a mere waiter.

~ 

“I’m home!” Yuu called happily, striding into the apartment he shared with Yutaka. Their apartment lights had been dimmed, but the kitchen lights were on, and Yuu guessed Yutaka was studying around their dining table again.

“Welcome back,” Yutaka responded coolly, his head never looking up, his eyes still focused on the set of textbooks opened right before him. One of his hands flipped a page, and the other was concentrated on jotting down notes in that thick book of his. “You came back early today.”

“Well,” Yuu skipped his way to the kitchen, stopping short just before the dining table. He teasingly slung his arms around Yutaka’s slumped back, hugging him tightly from the back. “I told you it was a trial date! Guess how much I got for listening to the old man rant about decaying balls today!”

Yutaka sighed, momentarily pausing in his writing of notes. He turned his head back, side-eyeing Yuu’s flirty gesture. “Just so you know, a better term to call those ‘decaying balls’ would be–”

“So yeah, I got four hundred bucks.” Yuu huffed, brushing Yutaka’s intellectual response off. Yutaka had a habit of correcting whatever Yuu said into scientific terms, and Yuu didn’t know if Yutaka was just showing off at this point, or if he was truly annoyed by Yuu’s vulgar terms for things sometimes. “Anyway, _Dr._ Yutaka, I’m having another date later this week, so rent won’t be a problem this month. Yay~”

Yutaka laughed a little at Yuu’s enthusiasm. “You know, Yuu, you don’t have to worry about money that much. You know I’m not uptight about it.” The apartment they stayed in belonged to Yutaka’s family, and though the apartment was located in a good location, neither too far from the city nor their university, the rent hadn’t been too expensive. Yuu saw the opportunity and took it, when Yutaka put up the advertisement looking for a roommate, and it came to Yuu’s convenience that Yutaka later became one of Yuu’s closest friends as well.

Yutaka came from a family of doctors, thus it was natural that Yutaka took interest in studying to become one, too. Though his family background made him well off, he never did become arrogant or cocky, and was honestly a good person to be around with. Yuu liked him a lot. 

He also casually accepted Yuu’s work as a sugar baby, so hey. 

“I can’t possibly take advantage of _you_ , when you’re already so easy to be taken advantage of,” Yuu teased, then loosened his arms around the brunet and danced off further into the kitchen. He pulled the fridge door open and grabbed for a drink, before deciding to prance back to the dining table to annoy Yutaka a little further. It was a Monday night, and Yuu only had afternoon classes tomorrow, so he didn’t have to worry about sleeping early today. 

“Don’t make too much noise,” Yutaka chided, snapping him a look as Yuu pulled a seat out and plopped himself down on it. Yuu ignored him and took out his phone, checking his inbox messages out of habit.

There were a few messages from his current sugar daddies that he promptly replied to, those of which were asking him generic _How are you, I miss you_ questions, wanting to know how the raven-haired was doing. Yuu also received a few more notifications from the website that he used to find potential sugar daddies itself, called _SeekingArrangement.com_ , and Yuu decided to check them out.

He scrolled through his inbox on the site, going through the men who’d newly messaged him. Checking some of their profiles showed that their income brackets were _way_ too low for Yuu, and the raven-haired scoffed as he read the flirty messages that they sent in hopes of charming Yuu out on a date. Yuu might be young, but he had been doing this for a little over a year, and he didn’t need men who wouldn’t be able to afford him.

There was only one that caught his interest this time, one that had no profile picture – probably to remain discreet due to his profession, as with many other high-profile sugar daddies out there – and he seemed to be living in Yuu’s area as well. He also appeared to be significantly younger than most men on this website – his profile listed his age as thirty-five – and he didn’t sound like a creep in the message he sent, so. It was just a simple _Hello, I saw your profile and you look like my type. Care for an arrangement?_

Plus, an annual $600k per year? Yum. He was likely a CEO of some sort. Or a high-ranking doctor. OK, no. Yuu was totally not down with doctors. Please tell him he was not a doctor.

Grinning to himself at the prospect of an additional, much wealthier sugar daddy, Yuu quickly typed a reply back to _TK0609_.

 ** _sugaraoixox_ :** _hi! you seem like my type too ;) are you sure you can afford me? heh._

“Oi, stop smiling to yourself. You look crazy,” Yutaka said, rolling his eyes at the sight. “Are you sexting one of your sugar daddies or something? No, wait – please don’t tell me. I don’t want to know the details.”

Yuu giggled at his words, then spontaneously jumped up from his seat. “I’m going to take a shower, then head for bed. Don’t stay up too late, okay?”

“Thanks, mum,” Yutaka mumbled, waving the raven-haired off. 

Yuu made his way to his room, stashed the newly acquired wad of cash into a savings box, then prepared for his bath, feeling pleased with today’s overall catch. 

~

 **_TK0609:_ ** _Haha, I like challenges. Pretty sure I can afford you. I’ll pay anything for someone as gorgeous as you._

The reply came at 8 in the morning, but Yuu only read it in the afternoon when he got up. Yawning as he slammed his alarm clock back shut, he found himself grinning again to himself as he looked back to the message. He’d been doing this sugar-dating thing for slightly over a year, and yet he never got tired of the whole compliment thing. He loved being showered with attention and love like this. He loved being flirted with and called ‘gorgeous’. _Man_ , Yuu was such an attention whore.

 ** _sugaraoixox_ :** _i like a man who is adventurous ;) are you sure you can afford me? tell me how you want to pamper me… :)_

Yuu then got into the shower and changed into a casual hoodie and jeans for class, and by the time he came out, his phone was already ringing with another message.

 **_TK0609:_ ** _I’m not exactly sure what beautiful creatures like you want these days, but I’ll give you anything you want as long as you’re good to me… I would try to make sure that stunning smile is on your face all the time, I would hate to see you upset. Let me take care of you._

Yuu _actually_ found himself blushing at the message sent. OK, this was too good to be true. Whoever this TK0609 person was, he _had_ to be hella ugly to need to go on a sugar-dating site to look for a paid relationship. 35 years old, earning $600k annually _and_ highly emotionally sensitive? He had to be hella ugly. Or a bad conversation partner. _Or_ , hella ugly. 

Yuu just prayed he didn’t have a STD. 

 ** _sugaraoixox_ :** _mmm, sounds good to me! that’s what i wanna hear from a befitting daddy <3 i’ll be good to you if you’re good to me!_

His reply was prompt as usual. 

 **_TK0609:_ ** _So... can I take you out for dinner?_

And fast. In his moves. 

 ** _sugaraoixox_ :** _mmm! just letting you know though, i usually set first dates as trial run. if it goes well then we’ll make an arrangement. you don’t have to pay me for my time on the first date, but if you want to, i won’t decline ;)_

 **_TK0609:_ ** _Got it. How about Friday night at 7? I’ll take you out to my favorite restaurant downtown._

**_sugaraoixox:_ ** _sure! i’ll text you where to pick me up a bit later. class in awhile, brb!_

Yuu found himself smiling all the way to class, happy he’d just scored another date.

~ 

They ended up texting all throughout lunch, and when Takanori, a good friend of his who was an English major as well, asked if Yuu was texting his boyfriend, Yuu shrugged it off.

“No boyfriend, remember?” Yuu laughed, but he still couldn’t stop the smile on his face as the texts from TK0609 came in. No one knew of his sugaring activities except for Yutaka, and Yuu preferred to keep it that way. If people caught wind of his little job that he did on the sidelines, there would be no future for Yuu, academically or job-wise. Yuu made certain that there was no way his personal and sugaring lifestyle could ever mix, taking his safety and future into account. 

“Fine, a boyfriend-to-be, then,” Takanori piped, and Yuu laughed once more at the term. 

“You know, it’s actually something close to that,” Yuu mused, smiling, looking once more to his phone. There was a long stream of messages from their earlier conversation.

 **_TK0609:_ ** _I figured since we’re meeting, you get to know my name. I’m Kouyou._

**_sugaraoixox:_ ** _you sound promising… :) you can call me Aoi, but i have to warn you that’s just a nickname though~ you get my real name if you stick long enough._

**_TK0609:_ ** _I have a good feeling about sticking long enough… Aoi._

 **_sugaraoixox:_ ** _well, i’m quite easy to please, you know ;p not as demanding as you may think I am, ahaha!_

 **_TK0609:_ ** _I don’t think you’re demanding at all… :)_

 **_sugaraoixox:_ ** _hmmm… <3_

Yuu then decided to appeal to his interests a bit. It always helped to look at your potential sugar daddy’s profile to check out what his hobbies, likes and dislikes were, since you could use them as conversation topics for kick starters, as well as gain more access into his life. And the more you showed that you were interested in him, the more he’d feel genuinely liked, and thus the higher the allowance he paid you. Yuu knew his game well.

 **_sugaraoixox:_ ** _you say you like golf on your profile. you know, I’ve always wanted to try it out… too poor for it :(_

**_TK0609:_ ** _I can take you… and teach you. If you want. It’s an easy sport. Ahaha. But it can get boring when you’re playing with really boring associates. Or old men. Wait, I’m probably old to you._

 **_sugaraoixox:_ ** _actually, you’re significantly younger than a lot of men on here. I’m surprised. and you’re not a creep too… :)_

 **_TK0609:_ ** _Haha, I can get creepy if I want. I mean, if you like that sort of thing._

Yuu laughed aloud at that message. There was something so horribly polite about Kouyou’s way of speaking so far that that random suggestive message seemed so funny.

“ _Still_ denying it’s a boyfriend?” Takanori asked, raising an eyebrow to the raven. Yuu nodded insistently, taking a huge bite of his sandwich as he raised his other hand to type a reply back to Kouyou on his phone.

 **_sugaraoixox:_ ** _i like a lot of things… i will also like anything you like, Kouyou :)_

**_TK0609:_ ** _Huh… I like a lot of things, too, you know. ;)_

A smiley. That was a first. Yuu beamed at the message, feeling good about their relationship development so far, then shut his phone off. Class was starting and he didn’t exactly feel like replying to Kouyou further – it was one thing to get your sugar daddy interested, and it was another to play the hard-to-get game and gain the upper hand first. Yuu would reveal more information to Kouyou in time to come, when it came to meeting him for dinner. 

For now, Yuu would play the haughty vixen who enjoyed flirting with Kouyou a little bit _too_ much.

~

When Yuu got back to his apartment, he could recognize by the delicious scent of food wafting in the air that Yutaka had already started cooking dinner for them. 

Usually they took turns to cook, but lately Yuu had been cooking more often since Yutaka was caught up in his exams. On days that Yuu was busy and out on a date, Yutaka would call for takeout. Occasionally the both of them had pizza or pasta if they weren’t feeling up to home-cooked food, however they tried their best to cook as much as possible, since they preferred it to takeout which could get too expensive at times.

“Oh, you’re back,” Yutaka said, turning around to greet Yuu, dressed in his usual checkered apron. Yuu tossed his bag and keys on the counter then made his way into the kitchen, preparing to set the dining table.

“It smells so great! You’re cooking your fish specialty again,” Yuu cooed quickly, happy at the sight of Yutaka’s signature dish. “Yum! I’m going to be grow too fat and the new guy I’m meeting this Friday will be _sooo_ upset when he sees me.”

“Eh? A new guy?” Yutaka asked, his interest perked. He finished whipping up his dish and moved to place it onto the dining table. “Care to elaborate?” 

“Umm, it’s just going to be another trial date, I guess,” Yuu said, setting the cutlery down as well. “His name is Kouyou, he’s thirty-five and he’s been flirting with me the past day. Also, he earns $600k per year. Yum!”

Yutaka rolled his eyes at his response. “You know, I never did see the appeal in all these sugar baby-daddy dating business. I mean, if I had _that_ much money, I would invest it or spend it on my family instead, not on some random–” He noticed Yuu’s glare midway and hesitantly trailed his words off. “Well, I mean… if it gets the bills paid.”

“You’re only saying that because you’re rich,” Yuu said disapprovingly, folding his arms. “You don’t know the pain of debt, do you?” 

Yutaka sighed. “I can’t control what you do, Yuu. And I’m not trying to say what you do is bad, either. But you’re my close friend, and I care for you, and I would love it if you didn’t have to pretend you liked all these older men in order to get your bills paid.”

Yuu remained silent for a while, and Yutaka was almost afraid he’d offended the raven. It was rare that anyone could silence the chirpy raven-haired who always seemed to be untroubled by anything in the world, but there were feelings and secrets Yuu kept to himself, too. And though the both of them knew that the reason Yuu started working as a sugar baby was to alleviate his stress from struggling with three jobs and school all at once, Yutaka usually steered away from talking to Yuu about it, knowing it was a touchy subject with the raven. 

He wasn’t exactly sure if Yuu ever did _truly_ like his job, or if Yuu was doing this purely out of survival sake. Yutaka always wished he could help Yuu out somehow, but Yutaka knew that until he held a job himself, he was powerless too in terms of finances.

“You know, I wish that too,” Yuu finally uttered quietly, as he settled himself down against a seat. “But we can’t have what we want in life, right? And being a sugar baby is a lot of work, too – I have to pretend to be someone I’m not, I have to pretend to only be happy or horny, nothing else, and I have to forgo a social life to meet all these men. So, in the end, it’s just like any other normal job, right? I’m working. They’re paying me for my company. It’s a business transaction. And it makes me happy enough.”

Yutaka gazed over to him with a worried look. 

“If you say so, Yuu. But I’m just letting you know that if you ever decide to quit this business, all you have to do is let me know. I won’t accept rent from you.”

Yuu tried to brush off the topic quickly. “Just shut up and start eating already! I’m starving.” 

Yuu tried not to be too concerned with Yutaka’s words, but it wasn’t like Yuu hadn’t thought over the same things himself. Of _course_ he’d love to work a normal job and still be able to pay the bills, but his family wasn’t well-off, and to be able to afford a university education meant that Yuu had to work ultra hard to pay off his debts. He’d found out that sugar dating was a quick and effective way in ensuring cash, and so far, it was something he found came naturally to him – appealing to older men, making them happy – and so Yuu didn’t think of quitting this business anytime soon.

But even though Yutaka hasn’t expressed displeasure in Yuu’s choice of profession, Yutaka clearly didn’t like it very much, did he? And though Yuu made sure to tell Yutaka wherever he was going and made sure Yutaka checked on him hourly whenever he was on a date, those safety and precautionary measures meant nothing when Yuu was miles away, in some other man’s car, on his way to the old man’s home. Yuu was constantly vulnerable to attacks, and the knowledge didn’t stomach well with Yutaka, who was hoping to be able to eventually become a doctor and save future lives. 

Either way, it wasn’t like Yuu had a choice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> !!!!! they meet next chapter !!!!!!
> 
> I've been talking about writing a sugar daddy based aoiha AU on my tumblr for ages. It has finally come to fruition!!!!!
> 
> I've got a bunch of content written out already so we'll see how it goes. I'm not sure how I want to update this story? A weekly basis? Twice a week? I have no idea. I actually learnt alot about the sugar dating world off an actual sugar baby's blog, and SeekingArrangement is an actual website you use to find sugar daddies in your area (I am not promoting them whatsoever, but the more you know).
> 
> If you liked this fic, do tell me what you thought of it <3


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FYI, sugar daddy!Kouyou looks like [this](http://oi60.tinypic.com/33pgff6.jpg), goodbye

Friday came soon enough, and after Yuu had filled Kouyou in on the details of where to pick him up at (the gas station was his standard pick-up point), Yuu was just left with picking out an outfit for their dinner date. Yutaka would be staying at the university late today, but he promised to be check his phone regularly for Yuu just incase Yuu needed an emergency escape route or needed him to call the cops on a creep.

As much as Yuu seemed to like this Kouyou person, you never really knew until you saw them in real life. Kouyou had been reluctant to share a photo with Yuu, saying it wouldn’t matter since they were meeting anyway, despite Yuu’s protests that he needed a photo reference to be able to spot him. Kouyou had simply retaliated with a _I’m blond and I’ll be in work clothes. Also, I’ll be picking you up in a Lamborghini, which is a sight rare enough around here, so no excuses there._ Yuu was completely convinced that Kouyou was dead ugly. There was no other explanation for it. Yuu was dead convinced.

Yuu had to make sure this Kouyou person liked him, anyway. With $600k as his annual salary, it was money that Yuu was willing to endure any kind of ugliness for. Yuu ended up picking out a casual top and tight denim jeans that showed off his ass a little too much. It was his go-to pants for trial dates, to ensure his potential sugar daddy saw his assets and just how much he had to offer, and the jeans trick so far had never failed him once. 

Wearing his favorite silver-onyx engraved necklace around his neck, he made sure to line his eyes prettily with eyeliner, giving them the extra ‘pop’ they needed. He brushed through his shoulder-length hair, and allowed them to fall freely around his face, deciding to look as easygoing as possible. He didn’t want to overdo his make-up nor hair on his first date with Kouyou and scare the man off.

Glancing to his watch, it was about time to start making his way to the gas station, so he grabbed his keys and phone and decided to set off. Taking in a deep breath, he prayed mentally that Kouyou would be at _least_ average looking. 

Oh, fuck it. If Kouyou was ugly and he didn’t offer at least five hundred bucks for his company tonight, Yuu would go home. 

Yuu ended up reaching the gas station five minutes earlier than agreed upon, but it seemed like Yuu wasn’t the only early bird. He spotted the black Lamborghini waiting by the gas station easily, and apparently the man inside the vehicle spotted Yuu easily, too. The Lamborghini drove up to Yuu’s side as soon as Yuu walked in, and Yuu was _not_ prepared at all for the tinted car window sliding down before him and the deep, low voice speaking out of it.

“Get in,” the man – who Yuu guessed was Kouyou – said, though he wasn’t able to take a good glimpse of his face yet.

Yuu had little time to fawn over the expensive black car as he pulled the car door open, careful not to leave any scratches, and slipped into the front seat, feeling his legs quiver a bit. He strapped the seat belt over himself, feeling the man’s intense gaze on him never pulling away, and he suddenly felt a wave of self-consciousness pass over him. Why was he so nervous?! He never had cause to worry, when men seemed to fall head over heels for him easily.

“Hey,” The man spoke in that low tone once more, sending Yuu shuddering, and it was only then did Yuu finally had time to turn to him, his stomach flipping as he did so.

…OK, you _had_ to be kidding him.

There wasn’t a bald-looking man with bad odor, no. There wasn’t any hideously obvious blemish on his face, either. He wasn’t particularly short, nor did he look peculiarly unattractive. Unlike what Yuu had previously thought, Kouyou was _definitely_ not dead ugly.

Hell, he was the exact opposite.

“Holy fuck,” Yuu said, not realizing what he’d just said until they left his lips. The raven slapped his hands over his mouth, disbelieving eyes devouring the sight before him.

So. Apparently.

Not only was Kouyou a thirty-five year old man who was a sweet-talker, and had a $600k annual salary, he also _happened_ to be extremely hot. Well, in Yuu’s terms, anyway. _Fuck_. 

Yuu had totally forgotten his preference for blonds. And Kouyou’s hair was a cool shade of blond, containing none of those horrid bleached yellow undertones other fake blonds had. His skin was pale, fairer than most, but he seemed to be the kind where the paleness ran in his genetics, and definitely not because he didn’t get out in the sun often. His arm muscles were a testimony to that.

Kouyou also had these dark, brooding eyes that, as they gazed at Yuu, looked as if he was perpetually amused or bored _or_ disinterested, and it made Yuu… _confused._  

Confused, because Yuu didn’t know what the blond was currently thinking about. Confused, because he was drop-dead gorgeous as fuck, save the eye bags decorating his eyes, but even _then_ it made him sexier, in the knowledge that Kouyou probably held some important position at a company somewhere that required him to work _so_ hard. Oh, _god_. Yuu would have even agreed to go on this date for _free_ if Kouyou had bothered to tell him an _ounce_ of how good-looking he was. 

Plus, did he mention the man smelt great? He had this rich-scented, musky cologne on him that made Yuu incredibly weak. 

In all of Yuu’s time doubling as a sugar baby, he had never come across a good- looking sugar daddy. _Never_. They were at least forty years old and above, had greasy hair (or close to no hair), had severe marital issues or were divorced, but had a shit ton of money. Here was a sugar daddy that was readily approaching him that had the blondest shade of hair, and the sexiest pair of goddamn eyes Yuu had ever lay his eyes upon. Yuu was _done_. So, there did exist a god out there after all.

“I’m sorry, did you get startled by my appearance?” Kouyou asked, frowning, his face looking a tad concerned.

Yuu laughed cruelly to himself, wondering if this was just a practical joke life was throwing at him. Well, Yuu was taking it, either way. There was no way he was passing up on this.

“Startled is an understatement,” Yuu said, his lips curving into his usual flirty smile. Kouyou broke into a smile as well, seeing Yuu’s pleased expression. “I think I just got the shock of my entire life.”

“Well, I wasn’t very startled by you,” Kouyou begun slowly, laughing at his words. “You look just like I thought. Very irresistible. You’re much prettier in real life.” The way he spoke was a mirror of the way he typed – very proper and respectful, and not to mention overly chivalrous. Kouyou was _unreal_.

Yuu couldn’t hide his grin and blush at his words, but he had a feeling Kouyou liked seeing Yuu reduced to a mess like that, anyway.

“You haven’t told me if you liked what you saw,” Kouyou said, as he placed both hands on the wheel and begun to drive. “I’m rather hurt.”

Yuu giggled to himself, eyes quickly falling over what little of Kouyou’s body he could observe from his seat. True to his word, the blond was still in his work clothes, and the tie around his neck seemed to fit _too_ snugly for him...

Yuu briefly wondered what it’d be like to loosen it.

Kouyou had rolled his sleeves up, however, and Yuu could catch a glimpse of the defined veins on his strong arms, telling of his age, trailing down all the way to his calloused looking hands currently on the steering wheel. Oh, _fuck_. Kouyou looked like the type where he would be fucking dominant in bed. Just the way Yuu liked it.

OK, Yuu usually didn’t think about having sex with his sugar daddies _this_ early on, but then again – he didn’t _usually_ think about having sex with random strangers. Ever. But he had never seen anyone like Kouyou, and the mere thought that Kouyou _wanted_ him, that Kouyou _chose_ him, that Kouyou thought he was gorgeous enough to the point of wanting to pay him for his company – Yuu felt giddy at the thought. Kouyou _liked_ him. And whether this was a real relationship or not, Yuu had fucking scored the jackpot with this one.

 “Do you always talk like that?” Yuu burst out with a laugh, eyes flickering back up to Kouyou’s face. Kouyou seemed confused by the sudden question. “You know, you’re very polite. And very British. And very eloquent.” 

Kouyou smiled a little at his answer. “Hmm? That’s new. Well, I don’t think I’m very British, but if it helps sate your curiosity, my mother is British. And I don’t really see anything wrong with the way I speak.”

Yuu hummed to himself. “Mmm, yeah. I don’t see anything wrong with it either.” Yuu eyed his ripped arms once more. “You’re really hot, by the way.”

Kouyou looked surprised for a second (seriously? _Seriously?)_ but then he just nodded his head and smiled again. “Thank you. I hope you weren’t offended by me not wanting to send you a photo beforehand, but I’m rather… high-profile, you see, and I don’t exactly want to reveal too many details about myself until we’re sure this is going to be a… thing.”

Oh, god, I hope it will, Yuu thought. There was no way Kouyou was slipping through his fingers when he was so close to wrapping him around them. Then again, how was it even possible that a bachelor like him wasn’t attached himself already? Or was Kouyou just looking for some fun in this state while his wife lived across the country?

“You aren’t married, are you?” Yuu asked, hesitant, though he didn’t see any ring on Kouyou’s hand.

Kouyou didn’t pause to answer. “I’m not.” 

“Or divorced,” Yuu added, slightly relieved. 

“Neither.” Kouyou said. “I did, however, just get out of a long-term relationship. I got out of it a year ago, actually. I’m still not comfortable with dating, now, but the past few months have taken a toll on me. I guess I started to want company again… And I don’t mind paying if I can get someone I like right off the bat. I hope you understand.” 

“Oh,” Yuu nodded, trying to show he was understanding of his situation. Then again, Yuu shouldn’t be too surprised, either. Kouyou was of course playing around – a man like him wouldn’t think of settling down so early in life, when he was in his prime. “It’s not like I’ll judge you, Kouyou. I’m here to keep you company, remember? I’ll do my best to keep you happy.”

“Great,” Kouyou smiled to him, seemingly pleased with his answer. “How about you? Do you have a boyfriend?”

“No,” Yuu responded instantly. “No time.”

“I see.” Kouyou nodded. “That’s great, then. I’d feel better knowing you didn’t have one.” Sensing he’d just said something sensitive, Kouyou quickly continued. “Not that you can’t, but – I trust you understand what I mean.” 

Yuu understood. Men with his status usually made the same requests of Yuu not dating or seeing anyone else, since they preferred the idea of thinking that their partner solely belonged to them, and they didn’t fancy knowing that they were sharing a person with anyone else, even if the relationship was only superficial and Yuu was only a sugar baby to him.

Yuu made a mental note not to tell him that Yuu was seeing other sugar daddies as well.

“Anyway, we’ve reached. I hope you like Japanese food.”

~ 

After placing their orders, Yuu found the both of them settling into comfortable silence with each other, though Yuu grew increasingly restless with the way Kouyou kept gazing to him. The older man had an amused face on, as usual, but he appeared to delight in Yuu’s presence, and the way his eyes seemed to be watching Yuu’s every movement made the raven-haired unnecessarily anxious. Was his eyeliner done right? Was his hair in a mess? Yuu couldn’t tell what the other man was thinking at all. 

Yuu just continued shyly looking back at him, reaffirming to himself that Kouyou was real and Yuu was indeed not dreaming. Along their walk here, Yuu had walked beside Kouyou and measured himself up to him and – _damn_. Kouyou was at least a head taller than him, and had shoulders that were so broad and a chest that seemed like it _definitely_ needed a bigger shirt. Yuu couldn’t wait to get home and tell Yutaka of today’s date already.

…Maybe he would even text him later. 

“So, I assume you are a university student, correct?” Kouyou was the first to speak. Yuu wasn’t usually so quiet, because he knew that he had to sustain the older man’s interest in order for the man to ask him out for future dates, but this time, it – was – _different_. Kouyou wasn’t old and greasy like the other men. Kouyou wasn’t someone that Yuu felt he could easily appeal to (despite Kouyou’s constant flirting with him). Kouyou was strong, confident, and Yuu could tell Kouyou was used to being listened to, which probably meant he was in a position of power at his job. Which reminded Yuu – he needed to ask what Kouyou worked as, too.

“I’m an English major.” Yuu answered, lips spreading into a friendly smile. Kouyou reciprocated it. “I guess you must know the pains of student debt, too… or not.” Maybe Kouyou was another Yutaka, having been born into a rich family and needn’t worry about money, ever. 

Kouyou chuckled, his face relaxing a little. “You know, it took me awhile to get here, too. I wasn’t born wealthy. My family was middle-class. My parents did try to finance my university loans, sure, but it wasn't enough. Fortunately for me, I got a scholarship that covered another part of my debt, but I had to work whenever I was free to eventually pay it all off too.” 

Eh? Yuu instantly felt his stomach churn at Kouyou’s story. He hadn’t expected that kind of history behind the blond, and found himself to be slightly embarrassed as he compared himself to Kouyou. Yuu and him had been in similar situations once, and Yuu could have gone down that road too, but he had chosen clear his debt by being a sugar baby instead. Would Kouyou think less of him like this?

“I’m not thinking less of you,” Kouyou immediately said, and Yuu widened his eyes, wondering if he had voiced his thoughts out loud. “Hey, you know, I’m in no position to judge anyone. I wouldn’t have bothered taking you out on a date if I just wanted to come here and judge you. I’m here to spend time with you, Aoi. And see your gorgeous face in real life.”

“Um.” Yuu’s cheeks turned a scarlet red at the realization that Kouyou had seen through his thoughts so quickly. “Thank you. I mean – yeah. I wasn’t worried at all, you know. I’m not… that self-conscious.” Kouyou just smiled at his words, shaking his head. “So, what are you working as?” 

Kouyou appeared to go into deep thought at his question. He seemed as if he was unsure if he should answer, and Yuu wondered how high-profile Kouyou was if he was so reluctant to disclose his details to Yuu like this.

“Hmm. I kind of own a company, now, I guess. It’s not a big deal.” 

Yuu’s breath stalled at the revelation. “So, you’re a CEO.” 

“Well.” Kouyou’s smile broadened. “If you would like to put it that way.” 

Oh my _god_. Yuu knew it. That explained a whole lot of things. He was pretty young for a CEO, but Yuu knew this also proved Kouyou’s capability at his job. 

“I understand why you’re too busy to bother with the dating game, now,” Yuu mumbled to himself, to which Kouyou just laughed. 

“Yeah, I am.” The blond replied. “I’m not at a place in life where I feel I have the time to be courting someone else again. And maybe this is an easy way out, but it doesn’t matter to me. I just want to spend time with someone I like, and feel that they enjoy spending time with me too.” 

Yuu smiled, nodding. “I understand, you know.” 

“Well, I’m happy you do,” Kouyou said gently, then decided to move on to a new topic of conversation. “You know, I’m really happy you agreed to come and meet me. I was quite hesitant in sending that message to you, but I figured I didn’t have much to lose.”

Yuu liked the idea of Kouyou being nervous about him. “You’re lying,” Yuu teased, shaking his head. “You couldn’t have been nervous to talk to me. Don’t you talk to a million people everyday?”

Kouyou only chuckled in reply. “I have a feeling the way you picture me as a CEO in your head is very different from the way I actually work, Aoi.”

Yuu giggled a little. “Well, in my defense, I’ve never been with a CEO before. Um, never been in their office, too.” The raven smiled cutely up to the blond, and for a moment Kouyou was simply silent and staring to him, hypnotized by the adorable sight. Yuu seemed surprised by the sudden attention, seeing as he hadn’t tried to flirt with the blond on purpose; but then he realized he could slowly work this to his advantage.

A second later the blond shook his daze off and laughed. “You’re _good_ ,” Kouyou sighed, sounding as if he was exasperated with Yuu already. “You know how much I like you, don’t you? You’re using it against me.”

“I’m not doing anything,” Yuu hummed, raising a hand to tuck some fallen hair strands back behind his left ear. Well, he wasn’t before, but like _hell_ he wasn’t going to now. If Kouyou was already so dazzled by him with just a single smile, Yuu wanted to see what other effects he had on him.

“I’m just… really glad you _picked_ me,” The raven-haired breathed, fluttering his eyes down then shyly gazing up to the blond as he spoke, trying to appear as demure as possible.

He saw an immediate falter in Kouyou’s expression, and heard a hitch in Kouyou’s breath, and Yuu resisted an outward laugh. He had Kouyou under the tips of his fingers already, and it was only their first date. 

Kouyou must _really_ like him. Yuu found himself innocently smiling, blinking back up to the blond. 

“I’m, um, it’s my honor,” Kouyou rushed through his words, saying, and it earned him a laugh from Yuu. “You know, maybe I could take you to my office sometime. If things go well. I’d give you that privilege.” 

“Oh?” Yuu hummed once more. “You know… Going to visit your office may not be so bad an idea.” Yuu could think up of many ways they could spend their time there, already, and all of them involved Kouyou bending Yuu over a desk.

Kouyou’s dark eyes flickered quickly to him at his response, and Yuu guessed he was thinking the very same things, as well. Were mental images of him pushing Yuu over a desk currently running through his head? Calloused hands pulling back his hair, breathy kisses being trailed down the back of his neck… Would Kouyou pin the raven’s arms down, or hold them back? Or maybe he would like Yuu to wrap his arms around him, nails scratching down his back as he fucked hard into him. Maybe the blond liked using his belt; or was his arm strength purely enough to hold Yuu down already? _Oh_ , wouldn’t Yuu like to know….

They remained like that, unspeaking, their eyes locked with each other in an intense gaze, wild thoughts washing over their minds; until Kouyou broke the silence himself.

“You’re very tricky,” Kouyou’s lips curved into an amused smile to the raven. “And you know exactly how to tease me, don’t you?”

Yuu feigned ignorance. He picked up his glass of water and took a casual sip. “Mmm, I wonder when our food is coming. I’m hungry.”

Kouyou smirked. “I wonder if your appetite is satiable.” 

“Are you calling me greedy?” Yuu asked.

“I never said greedy was bad,” Kouyou’s eyes never left Yuu’s ones.

It was at that point that their food came, and the raging sexual tension between them considerably lightened up a little.

~

Very soon the dinner came to an end, but Yuu was confident that he’d enticed the blond enough for him to want to ask him out again. Yuu even felt sorry that the hours had passed by so soon – during dinner, their conversations went back to what they were before, and Yuu liked how easy it was to carry a conversation with Kouyou. It was simple, relaxed, and casual, and Kouyou was constantly gentlemanly to him, always remembering to drop in a compliment or two to him; and when it came to their food Kouyou even made sure to save the best bits for Yuu to eat.

“Is it nine-thirty already?” Kouyou asked, looking mournfully to his watch on his left hand. He’d already called for the bill and paid promptly, and all that was left to do for the both of them was to take Yuu home. The disappointment on Kouyou’s face was obvious, and Yuu relished quietly in his heart in knowing that Kouyou had enjoyed their dinner as much as the raven had.

“It is quite late, isn’t it?” Yuu answered, mimicking the polite manner in which Kouyou spoke. Kouyou seemed to notice it, and as he looked over to Yuu with furrowed brows to acknowledge it, the raven-haired returned a playful smile to the blond. 

“I guess I have to take you home,” Kouyou said, laughing at Yuu a little. “You know, doing that doesn’t help your cause at all. You’re way too cute.”

“What cause?” Yuu asked, looking up to him doe-eyed.

Kouyou just smugly smiled to him. “Taking you home. I might take you somewhere else instead.”

Yuu felt his heart drum in anticipation. It was back again – Kouyou breaking out of his polite demeanor to say something suggestive to him. It felt almost as if underneath Kouyou’s well-behaved exterior, he had a darker side to him that would only be unleashed behind closed doors and in bed. Or, well, bent over desks. Yuu didn’t mind either. 

Either way, Yuu usually upheld his strict no-sex policy on first dates, but he _definitely_ didn’t mind being taken to Kouyou’s home if Kouyou so wanted to do so. 

…Though, Yuu probably shouldn’t. He had to reserve something for Kouyou to look forward to on future dates, after all. 

“Was this what you meant when you told me you could be creepy, too?”

“Really? What I said was creepy?” Kouyou relaxed, chuckling. “You know, if you think _that_ was creepy, I’m not sure you can handle me on future dates.” 

Yuu narrowed his eyes to him, suddenly feeling offended by his instigation. “You’re underestimating me.” 

“Am I?” Kouyou shrugged, folding his arms. He cocked his head to the side, eyes glinting as he looked to the raven, as if assessing him. “Hmm. Maybe I am.”

Yuu smiled wryly in return. “You think playing the mysterious card is cute. Predictable.”

“Oh?” Kouyou smiled gently to him. “I’m predictable, now?” 

“I’ve had too many men play too many kind of games with me,” Yuu cocked an eyebrow up to him. 

Kouyou seemed slightly perturbed by Yuu’s comment.

“Too many men?” Kouyou asked, concerned. 

Yuu then realized he’d forgotten about Kouyou’s little trait. He liked thinking he was the only man in Yuu’s life, didn’t he? Yuu would have to mark that down in his brain.

“Enough, anyway,” Yuu quickly tried to brush it off. Kouyou seemed reluctant to let it go _that_ easily, but he realized he probably wasn’t in a place to question Yuu on their first date. 

“I guess we should get going, then,” Kouyou said, tight-lipped, and as he stood up to make a move, Yuu followed his back, trying to figure out what kind of person Kouyou exactly was.

~

They stopped at the gas station as Yuu requested, but just as Yuu unstrapped himself from the seatbelt, Kouyou quickly reached under his seat and brought out an envelope in hand. Yuu was surprised at the gesture, having not expected a payment since Kouyou hadn’t mentioned anything about it.

“There’s $600 in cash in it,” Kouyou proceeded to say, just as Yuu accepted it from his hands.

“I wasn’t expecting anything,” Yuu mumbled, but he was still glad for Kouyou’s offering anyway. 

“I know, but I felt bad taking your time. There will be more the next time I see you, I promise.” Kouyou assured, and Yuu’s heart skipped a beat at his words. There was going to be a next time. “You can discuss it with me over a message or phone call. Speaking of, we need to exchange numbers.”

Yuu smiled to himself. Kouyou had decided that he’d wanted to further their arrangement, and it thrilled Yuu to think that the handsome CEO wanted to see him again. They exchanged numbers in their phones, after which there was nothing left to do but to say goodbye.

“Thank you for tonight,” Kouyou smiled gratefully to the raven.

“Good night,” Yuu murmured in reply, then, very hesitantly, leaned over to plant a soft kiss against Kouyou’s cheek. Yuu didn’t usually give kisses on first dates, but Kouyou had left such a tasteful mark on him Yuu couldn’t resist.

The blond was momentarily stunned. 

“See you soon,” Yuu laughed, saying, then pushed the car door open, getting out.

 _Oh_ , Kouyou was definitely going to ask him out on a second date at this rate. He was going to make him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So they meet in this chapter. Yuu has Kouyou wrapped around his finger so bad. Also oops, I tend to envision Kouyou with a british accent when he's a businessman too much. oops.


	3. Chapter 3

Yutaka was already home in their apartment, and as usual, had his head buried in books. This time, however, there didn’t seem to be the usual noisy flipping of pages or the loud scribbling of notes, which seemed strange to Yuu. As the raven tip-toed to the kitchen to check, his suspicions were confirmed when he saw Yutaka’s weary body slumped over the dining table, his head crashed in between pages of a medical book. He must be tired, Yuu thought. Consecutive late nights of studying must have finally taken a toll on him.

It was only then did Yuu realize that Yutaka had purposely left his phone on next to him, probably waiting for any of Yuu’s emergency texts to come in. Yuu felt his heart squeeze at the thought; Yutaka _really_ was a good friend to him. Yuu debated between waking him up and getting him to bed or simply grabbing a blanket and laying it over him, but a quick groan from Yutaka’s lips helped Yuu come to a decision immediately. It didn’t look very comfortable sleeping in that position, and Yuu didn’t want Yutaka to suffer in the morning when he woke up.

“Yutaka, wake up,” Yuu called softly, nudging the shoulders of his roommate gently. Yutaka lightly stirred up, seemingly confused by what was going on.

“H-Huh?” Yutaka asked, yawning as he opened his eyes slowly, looking over Yuu’s face. It then registered unto him that Yuu was back from his date. “Oh, you’re back. What time is it?” 

“It’s only ten,” Yuu said, looking to his watch. Yutaka jolted up and quickly reached for his books, looking over the notes he’d made. “You must be tired. Don’t you have an exam tomorrow? Just get an early rest today.”

Yutaka shrugged his weariness off and sighed, shaking his head. “Nah, I still have things to go through. How was your date?”

Yuu frowned at his insistence, then walked into the kitchen. “I’m going to make some coffee for you, then. Well, my date went rather well, I guess. He happened to be this really hot CEO, and he was very sweet to me. We exchanged numbers, so maybe he’ll become a regular, too.”

Yutaka stiffened visibly at his words, evidently worried about how Yuu was going to cope with another daddy to the mix. “Don’t you already have three regulars? How are you going to juggle all four of them?”

“Well,” Yuu began fixing up coffee for Yutaka. “I really only see one every week, _really_. The other one I see twice a month, and the third has an irregular schedule due to his travelling job, so I only see him if he flies in town.” 

“It seems like it’ll take a toll on you, though.” Yutaka mumbled, his deft fingers flipping through pages of his textbook again. Yuu smiled at his words.

“Stop being so concerned for me, when you’re not even taking care of yourself!” Yuu laughed, just as he finished stirring the coffee he had in his hand. He made his way to the dining table, placed the cup down next to Yutaka’s books, and then slung his arms around the brunet as per his habit, snuggling his head up affectionately against the brunet’s neck. “Listen to me and go to sleep. You little nerd.”

Yutaka narrowed his eyes to him. “Said nerd also has two exams tomorrow morning, and would like to at least pass them, thanks.” 

Yuu pouted. “You’re lying. You just want to top your class again, don’t you? You little overachiever.” He pinched the tip of Yutaka’s nose playfully, earning him another groan from the brunet. 

“I don’t know how your sugar daddies stand you, you’re so childish,” Yutaka huffed, waving the raven away. Yuu giggled at his reaction and squeezed him in his grasp before pulling away, dancing off to his room. 

“I’m going to take a shower then head to bed. Don’t sleep too late, alright?” 

“Yes, mum,” Yutaka groaned again. Yuu just laughed back at him.

~

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Had a splendid dinner tonight with you… Want to see you again soon._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Are you home yet?_

**_Kouyou:_ ** _Let me know when you’re safely back at home. If not I’ll worry._

Yuu smiled widely as he stared at the messages Kouyou had just sent him. He’d just gotten out of the shower, and hadn’t thought to check his phone when he’d reached home. From the three messages he’d sent him, Kouyou looked pretty worried about him, and Yuu was pleased at that fact. Kouyou seemed to be someone he could rely on to take care of him, and it helped that Kouyou was so affluent and rich, too. It was to Yuu’s favor that Kouyou was already so enamored with the raven, and Yuu just hoped it would last – this fatal attraction Kouyou harbored for him.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i’m home! sorry i didn’t reply you earlier, i was checking up on my roommate and took a shower. didn’t check my phone._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _thank you for worrying over me <3 :)_

Yuu scanned through his other text messages, realizing he had one from the attorney he would be meeting tomorrow. The attorney was a man in his early forties, recently divorced, and Yuu had been meeting him for about half a year now. He proved to be the most regular and stable, and he paid Yuu generously when it came to spending dates with him. They had reached the point where Yuu occasionally agreed to spending nights with him, and last month Yuu had managed to convince him to pay off half of his student loan. Yuu was confident he could get him to pay off the other half by the end of the year, so Yuu wasn’t complaining when the average-looking attorney was requesting for him to stay more nights and go to bed with him more often. 

Of course, sex was a normal occurrence in these sugar daddy type of relationships, and Yuu had no doubt Kouyou would be asking him for it soon enough. It was clear to Yuu that Kouyou was a wealthy, but lonely man, and judging by the lustful gazes Kouyou had been giving him all throughout tonight’s dinner, Yuu didn’t think Kouyou would last long in maintaining that polite and gentlemanly disposition of his before breaking and asking Yuu for _more_.

Well, whatever his sugar daddies wanted, Yuu would give, anyway. Yuu could give both companionship and sex, as long as they paid him fairly in return.

Yuu was typing a quick reply to the attorney, reconfirming their date for tomorrow, when Kouyou texted him another message.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Of course I’ll worry over you… You’re too precious, I’m afraid I might lose you._

**_Kouyou:_ ** _About the second date… We’ll make this a weekly thing, yeah? I want to see you at least once a week. Is that possible?_

It wasn’t _impossible_ , Yuu thought. It wasn’t like classes took up a lot of his time anyway. On weeks where he would be seeing three sugar daddies at one go, it would be tough to squeeze in, yeah, but Yuu thought he could deal with it. There was nothing the raven-haired couldn’t handle.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _sure thing… :) four meets, $4k per month. that’s my terms._

Four thousand should mean nothing to Kouyou, after all. Yuu rated his fees per his customer’s income, and Kouyou clearly had too much money to spare. Yuu was tempted to ask for more, but decided four thousand was a fair deal. 

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Make it $5k. You deserve more :) I’ll pay you $1250 every time I see you. To make it fair on both ends._

Oh, good god. Yuu was loving Kouyou already.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _mmm I like the sound of that <3 only in cash, like today, yeah? bank cheques are too suspicious, might get me checked at the bank :)_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Yes, that’s okay._

**_Kouyou:_ ** _Well then, I’m glad we got that settled. I’ll tell you my available date for next week soon… Rest well, pretty. Enjoy your weekend._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _you too! i was very happy with today, i’ll see you soon <3_

Yuu went to sleep feeling very satisfied that night.

~

The date with the attorney went well. They spent a whole day out together, and Yuu got taken shopping at a high-end mall where they stayed to have lunch and dinner. Yuu ended up having some nice clothes bought for him, as well as some expensive pen and notebooks the attorney had insisted on purchasing for him as well. It wasn’t like Yuu _needed_ them – but he knew the older man liked spoiling him anyway.

It was strange that the attorney wasn’t requesting for Yuu to stay over tonight, but it wasn’t like Yuu was complaining. As they reached the attorney’s car in the mall’s parking lot, however, the older man had pushed Yuu against it and kissed Yuu for a good few minutes or so. The raven-haired then eagerly returned the kiss, hands wrapping delicately around the man’s neck.

Yuu ended up getting a nice $850 at the end of the night, when the attorney dropped him off at the gas station as per requested. With his hands full of shopping bags, Yuu walked home contentedly, humming as he thought over his ever-increasing allowance. With the past three dates, he’d already made $1850 so far. It was already enough to cover this month’s rent and groceries, and with the extra money he’d earn on the following dates, he’d add them to his savings and use a part of them to pay off his pending student loans. Things were looking bright for him so far.

When Yuu finally reached his apartment, he was surprised to see the house empty and void of Yutaka’s presence. Then again, the aspiring doctor had his own friends too. It was a nice Saturday night and Yutaka most likely didn't want to spend it studying as usual, considering he just had two exams in the morning.

Yuu settled the shopping bags down in his room and decided to wash up, before starting on an assignment that was due the end of the following week. He’d been spending too much time sugaring to properly do some research for the assignment, and it made Yuu feel slightly guilty that he was neglecting his work for… well, money.

Still, it wasn’t like Yuu was slacking off, or anything. Yuu was using the money he earned to pay off his student loans, too.

Yuu spent a few hours doing his assignment, then decided to catch a short break before continuing. A swift look to the clock showed that it was nearing 11, already, and Yuu decided to text Yutaka incase he needed any help getting home.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _where are yoooouuuu? it’s getting late. text me back!_

His own inbox showed that he had one or two texts from his other sugar daddies as usual, scheduling meet-ups with him, but there was nothing from Kouyou. Yuu didn’t know why he felt a stir of disappointment inside of him, but then reminded himself it didn’t mean well. Yuu _never_ looked forward to texts from his sugar daddies. Just because Kouyou was particularly hot did _not_ give him any leeway to hope anything from the blond. Kouyou was just in it for the companionship and sex, and that was it. 

And so was Yuu. He would leech off Kouyou’s wallet as long as the blond wanted him around, and it was going to be that way. Yuu had to remind himself to remember to stick to certain boundaries, which were the very basis of a sugar daddy and baby relationship.

Yuu couldn’t help but type a little text to Kouyou, though. A small lil’ text wouldn’t hurt, right? Kouyou had already said he wanted their relationship to continue, after all.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _hope you had a nice Saturday <3 :)_

It was then that Yutaka replied his text from before. 

 **_Yutaka:_ ** _wenT outtoTHE barrsz. mmight haffe gotten a liiiiil dRunK ehe_

Oh, fuck. A drunk Yutaka never meant anything good. The last time Yutaka had gotten drunk, he ended up spewing gibberish medical nonsense as he puked all over the sink, and even got some of it onto Yuu’s shirt. There was no way Yuu was going through that hell again. 

 **_Yuu:_ ** _-__- get your ass back here now. or can you even walk? do you need me to come get you?_

 **_Yutaka:_ ** _imMM fiiiiNe. gg home nooow……… mizz you :)))))))0ad0_

Jesus Christ. Yutaka never handled liquor well, so why did he even bother drinking? Were his exams stressing him out too much?

 **_Yuu:_ ** _you’re so dead when you get home, punk!!! also, if you puke all over me I’m fucking moving out tomorrow morning. not joking… -__-_

His phone rung with another message, and to Yuu’s surprise, it was Kouyou texting him this time. 

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _It was nice enough. I was in the office for the first half of the day, but I got to return home by evening and relax and have a nice time by myself. My day would have been better if you were by my side, though. But I’m not complaining. How was your day?_

Yuu was unable to control the grin widening on his face. Of _course_ Kouyou would be working on a Saturday. Trust him to flirt with Yuu even through a casual text message, too. 

 **_Yuu:_ ** _it was nice! i went out_

Yuu stopped himself right there. What if Kouyou questioned who he went out with? Eek. Yuu had to make himself clear.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _it was nice! i went out and did some shopping by myself and got some nice clothes._

The notification that showed Kouyou was typing popped up as soon as the raven’s message sent out.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _That’s good to hear. Do you usually go out a lot by yourself?_

Yuu paused for a moment, holding his breath as he typed a response.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _well, not really. i just decided to pamper myself today, that’s all._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Oh… Just asking, because maybe I could take you out shopping next time, too. Just tell me where you want me to take you and I will. You don’t have to worry about the expenses._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _ah :) that sounds like a great idea! so now, other than your office, you could try taking me to a mall… ;p sounds fun._

**_Kouyou:_ ** _Haha, you’re still keen on the office idea. I see._

**_Kouyou:_** _It’s not that exciting, you know? My office is quite boring._  

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i wouldn’t know about that, you’re very exciting to me… :)_

Kouyou stopped typing for a second. Did Yuu surprise him with his forwardness again? The raven-haired laughed at the idea, only to be rudely interrupted by the incessant ringing of their doorbell. Yuu frowned – it was probably Yutaka, and swear to god, Yuu was _so_ whooping his ass the next morning for going drinking again. 

Yuu placed his phone down and hurried to the door, pulling it open and coming into sight with a slumped body leaning against his gate. Yutaka looked like a drunken mess, with his body reeking of alcohol and his face burning red in a state of intoxication. He was only half-awake, and made groaning noises throughout, curling himself up to get into a more comfortable sleeping position against the gates. Yuu sighed and unlocked the gates, then hooked his hands underneath Yutaka’s arms and dragged him into the apartment. After making sure the doors were locked behind them, Yuu dragged Yutaka once more until he was safely onto the couch in the living room.

“Jesus christ,” Yuu muttered, holding his breath as he inhaled the stench of liquor emanating in the air. He ran to get a towel, soaked it with water, then rushed back to Yutaka’s side, quickly dabbing it all over his face and his neck to cool him down. He allowed his fingers to caress past Yutaka’s face for a moment, heaving a sigh at the sight.

It was rare that Yutaka got himself _this_ drunk, seeing as how Yutaka was usually the more sensible one out of them two.

“You’re hopeless,” Yuu fretted, shaking his head.

A sudden grip on his hand then jolted him up. Yutaka’s fingers had reached up and encircled tightly around Yuu’s wrist without him noticing, as if determined not to pull away, mumbling incoherent things in his drunken state.

“I… will… save… for… don’t… them… you… leave…”

“Go to sleep,” Yuu said softly, easing the brunet to rest. Yutaka fell asleep seconds later, clearly too tired to function. Yuu got up to find a couple of blankets to lay over Yutaka, before shutting the lights off and tiptoeing back to his bedroom.

There was already a message from Kouyou on his phone. 

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I think I know where I want to take you next… Can I steal you for the whole of Saturday next week, babydoll._

Yuu giggled at his term of endearment. Two could play at this game, too. 

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i’ll only agree if you promise me you’ll make my time worthwhile, daddy… <3_

It sent him a sugar rush, to be calling Kouyou such a _name_ after just one date. Kouyou replied swiftly, apparently having been eager for Yuu’s text. 

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Oh, you didn’t reply for 45 minutes. I thought you disliked the nickname. You frightened me a little, pretty… I’ll definitely make your time worthwhile._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _sorry, roommate came home drunk and i had to help him out a little. i hate it when he gets drunk ><_

**_Kouyou:_ ** _Why? Does he touch you?_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _no! he would never. we’re best friends. he’s a cute nerd, but, you know. i like my men… exciting ;p_

**_Kouyou:_ ** _Hmmm I wonder what excites my babydoll…_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _you have a week to think about it… <3 :)_

**_Kouyou:_ ** _The stress of it all. And I thought being a CEO was tough enough._

Hmm? Was Yuu teasing him way too much? Yuu didn’t want Kouyou to feel any tension around him; his job was to relax him, after all. 

 **_Yuu:_ ** _come Sat I’ll definitely do my part to relax you, daddy!_

**_Kouyou:_ ** _call me that in real life and you won’t like what’s coming_

Yuu giggled at his message. _Oh_ , Yuu was enjoying this way too much.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _how are you so sure i won’t like it, daddy?_

**_Kouyou:_ ** _Enough. I don’t need to get into a cold shower this late at night._

Yuu grew smug at the thought of turning Kouyou on just by sending him dirty texts. He could definitely manipulate Kouyou at this rate, alright.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Go to sleep, babe, I’ll talk to you tomorrow morning?_

**_Kouyou:_ ** _If you want._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _night <3 text me tomorrow, I’ll be waiting :)_

Yuu groaned when he turned away from his phone and remembered he still hadn’t finished the last bits of his assignment up. He was definitely not sleeping early tonight. 

~ 

“I still can’t believe you got drunk,” Yuu chided Yutaka over breakfast the next morning, while pouring a glass of water for the brunet. Yutaka had woken up with a pounding headache, and Yuu knew they were both going to spend Sunday trying to nurse Yutaka back to health. The brunet was unnecessarily sulky and moody this morning, however, and Yuu was determined to know why.

“I thought you already knew you couldn’t handle your liquor well,” Yuu continued, frowning as he placed the glass of water along with some migraine-relief pills onto the table for Yutaka. The brunet fidgeted in his seat and refused to look up to the raven, which irked Yuu more than it should.

“I don’t need advice from _you_ ,” Yutaka simply said in a disgruntled tone. The following silence resounded loudly in Yuu’s ears. 

“What did you say?” Yuu asked in disbelief, a shocked expression on his face.

Yutaka finally snapped his eyes to him – and Yuu saw they were unusually resentful, so unlike the usual kindness and tenderness in his eyes. The raven tried to suppress his hurt, appearing as if Yutaka’s words didn’t matter to him, but Yuu had felt the infliction to his heart, and he was quickly wondering why Yutaka was so annoyed at him.

“I don’t think you want me to repeat what I just said,” Yutaka sneered at him.

Yuu’s gaze faltered to him, upset.

“I was just asking out of concern as a friend, but I guess you don’t really need it.” The raven turned to the stove, preparing to make breakfast for the both of them. The air was tense and cold between them. “Fine, then. I’ll be cooking eggs and hotdogs for us today.”

Yutaka rushed to stop him, growling. “I’m not hungry.”

Yuu sucked in a breath, his voice in a placating tone. “You’re going to have to get over your migraine. Maybe some food will do you good.”

“Look, I don’t fucking care, okay? I’m not in the mood to deal with this.” Yutaka countered, grabbing his pills on the table and swallowing them quickly before gulping down his glass of water. Then he stood up and turned his back to the raven, readying himself to leave. 

It was then that Yuu ran to him and grabbed hold of his arm hastily, deciding he’d had enough of Yutaka’s childish tantrum. Yutaka was always the more responsible; the more levelheaded one out of the two, and to see him so _intense_ , so _temperamental_ , severely worried the raven.

“You’ll tell me what’s wrong and you’ll tell it to me now!” Yuu yelled. 

Yutaka jerked from Yuu’s grasp with a loud hiss and harshly pushed the raven away. The raven’s heart wrenched tightly as he fell roughly back against the fridge behind him. 

“You’re being a nuisance! Can’t you just leave me alone for once? Why am I constantly getting nagged at you for every _goddamn_ thing?! You’re not my mother, you know!” Yutaka snapped. 

Yuu’s heart further twisted as he spoke, his voice octave going higher with every word. “You’re my best friend and I care for you! I don’t understand why you’re being like this! As far as I know, your mother _wasn’t_ the one who helped you to bed last night! Guess who fucking did? _ME_!”

Yutaka scowled at him in return, and Yuu wondered what he’d exactly done to deserve this kind of treatment.

“Do you want a fucking award for that? Do you need me to give you a gold star, or something? _Oh_ , like you’d need anything from me. You have all the things you need in the world thanks to all the men you’ve been fucking with out there, haven’t you? Just go run to your sugar daddies, _Yuu_ , they’ll save you from anything.” 

The raven gasped at Yutaka’s remark, knowing the brunet _never_ crossed the line when it came to discussing his job as a sugar baby. It was never something Yuu was actively proud of, and Yutaka _knew_ it. Yuu was sensitive to that aspect of his life, and he never wanted it to come in between them. 

And _now_ he was using it against the raven. 

“And I thought I could trust you,” Yuu’s voice lowered, his gaze falling to the ground at the brunet’s words, his throat quickly growing dry. “You won’t even tell me what’s wrong and you want to turn against me. I guess I see how things are.” 

Yutaka took a couple of steps back, furiously curling his hands into fists as he hurried to the door. Yuu watched him as he left, holding back hot tears.

“Don’t expect a fucking apology from me,” the brunet barked.

Once Yutaka left the apartment with a loud slam to the door, Yuu’s body slipped down against the fridge, seating himself dejectedly against the floor. He sat there with a heavy heart, contemplative in his thoughts, trying to pinpoint the exact reason Yutaka was so mad at him. Yutaka had never been like this before. Something went wrong, but Yuu just didn’t know what. Yuu didn’t understand what was going on. Yuu just wanted to take care of the brunet…

His phone vibrated with a new message, and the raven pulled it out from his pocket to check. Perhaps Yutaka would explain it to him… Perhaps… 

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Good morning! Hope you’re awake. If you’re not awake yet, just go back to sleep and ignore this message. You deserve to sleep in on a Sunday morning! Have a good day xx_

Yuu wasn’t usually so weak, but reading Kouyou’s words just made him want to _cry_. He typed a reply back immediately with a heavy heart. 

 **_Yuu:_ ** _Something bad happened. I don’t feel too good. I don’t know what’s going on_

He knew his boundaries, and he knew that he wasn’t supposed to be revealing to a sugar daddy that he was blatantly upset, but Yuu couldn’t think of anyone else to talk to. Takanori? But Yuu rarely emotionally confided in him, and he wasn’t sure he was so comfortable revealing his personal life to a schoolmate. Then again, Yuu wasn’t ever comfortable revealing his emotions to anyone else, either. He had grown so used to telling Yutaka everything that now that the brunet was gone, Yuu was at a loss of what to do. 

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _What’s wrong? Talk to me. Call me_

Yuu paused at his message, feeling uncertain if he should call Kouyou just yet. They hadn’t even been on a second date, but it’d already felt like he’d been talking to Kouyou for such a long time, and the raven was finding it too easy to open himself up to him – even though Yuu knew it wasn’t a good idea to do so, considering it was unwise to get _too_ emotionally attached to the blond.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Babe, if you’re not calling me, I’m calling you. Talk to me_

Yuu just – he wasn’t so sure about a phone call now. If he started talking, his emotions would pour out and – Yuu would be so emotionally vulnerable, so emotionally open, that he was afraid it would scare Kouyou away.

Yuu didn’t want to scare him away.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Fine. I’m calling._

True to his word, the blond started calling him. Yuu stared at his phone for a good four rings before he hesitantly picked it up, holding the phone close to his ear. 

“H-Hello…?” Yuu asked, unsure. 

“Aoi?” Kouyou sounded just like Yuu remembered him, in that deep raspy voice of his. Hearing him brought him so much comfort, already, and Yuu muffled a relieved sob to himself. “Are you crying? Oh no, oh no, babe, tell me what’s wrong. I don’t want to hear you so upset.” 

“It’s nothing,” Yuu’s voice quavered, clutching the phone tighter to himself. “I had a fight with my roommate, that’s all. He got really mad at me.”

Kouyou grunted irately at the other end. “Where is he now? Why would _anyone_ get mad at you?”

Yuu smiled weakly to the phone. “You know, it’s funny that you ask, because… I don’t even know why he’s mad at me. But he started saying things that he knew would hurt me. He said I just needed to run to my sugar daddy, and everything would be alright, and…” Yuu looked shamefully away. “I guess he’s right. I am nothing, after all. I’m useless.” 

Kouyou’s voice grew aggravated over the line. “No! That’s not true! We may only have started talking, but I can tell from just one date that you’re intelligent, funny, drop-dead gorgeous, and sexy as fuck. You’re _everything_. I want to see you again for a reason. I’ve never met someone who has dazzled me so bad before. You’ve rendered me completely hopeless when it comes to you.” 

Kouyou comforted him and made him feel better instantly with his words, and Yuu felt his heart leap somersaults in his chest. And he knew they were all lies, but… “You’re only saying that because…”

“Because what?” Kouyou asked impatiently. 

Yuu bit his lip. “You want to have sex with me.” 

“ _What_? No, Aoi, you’ve got it all wrong–” 

“No, Kouyou, it’s okay, I understand. It’s what our relationship is meant for, and I know how these things work. You don’t have to… You don’t have to say these things for my sake.” Yuu glanced to the floor as he spoke.

Kouyou went silent on his end.

“I’m coming over.” 

“You–” Yuu’s eyes widened when he realized what the blond just suggested. “What?” 

“Or taking you out. Whatever works. Don’t say no to me. If you’re not going to listen to me over the phone, then I’ll make you listen to me in real life. I want to see you again, anyway. And I don’t have anything urgent to finish by today.”

Yuu smiled unconsciously at his words. “But… but I’d be taking your time.”

“And I’d be taking your time, too, you know.” Kouyou pointed out. “I’ll pay you too, of course. Just let me take you out so you don’t have to spend today crying in your apartment over some asshole who couldn’t even say sorry to you.” 

Yuu wiped at his red-washed eyes, still smiling uncontrollably to himself. “Okay, then, but only because you insisted. I’ll meet you at the gas station in half an hour?”

“Okay, love.” Kouyou sounded more relaxed now that Yuu had agreed to meeting him. “Can’t wait to see you. I’ll be using the black Lamborghini as usual.” 

Yuu got up on his feet quickly after the phone call ended, dashing to his room to get changed and made up. He dressed in a black printed tee and tight jeans as usual, adorned his favorite necklace, and applied slick eyeliner around his eyes. They covered up the puffiness, though Yuu was pretty sure it was still evident he had been teary, even if only for a bit. It was better than nothing, though.

He fluffed his hair then grabbed for his phone, not even bothering with a wallet since he was sure Kouyou wouldn’t let him pay for anything, anyway.

The thought of seeing Kouyou again made his day all better already.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so Yuu starts calling Kouyou _daddy_ in this chapter, ahahah. Not enough for me to add the "Daddy kink" tag in the warnings section, but believe me when I say it's coming soon. ;)


	4. Chapter 4

Kouyou was early when it came to picking him up as usual, however there was a little surprise for the raven this time round. Just as Yuu was getting into the black Lamborghini, he got quickly ambushed by the blond with a huge bouquet of red roses. Yuu didn’t know how Kouyou had found time in between to rush to a flower shop to get him flowers, but as he looked to Kouyou with a questioning look, the blond just returned to him a sly smile that made Yuu’s heart pound madly in his chest. Yuu accepted the bouquet tightly into his hands, blushing at the gesture. The smell of freshly scented roses soon filled up the car and Yuu couldn’t stop his heart fluttering at the sight of Kouyou’s thoughtful gift.

“Do you like them?” Kouyou murmured, gently gazing over to the raven.

Yuu’s face lit up like a five-year-old kid unwrapping his presents. “Yes! I love them. You’re so thoughtful. Thank you.”

The blond smiled widely at Yuu’s reaction. “I’m glad you didn’t turn up with tears on your cheeks,” he whispered, a hand reaching over to gently brush against Yuu’s right cheek. Yuu’s face reddened at the contact. “I’m going to make sure that smile stays on your face the whole day. No frowning.”

“But I’m really happy, already,” Yuu replied, softly, looking to his lap.

Kouyou tensed at his voice, startling the raven a little, but before Yuu had the chance to ask what was wrong, the blond spoke up.

“I want to kiss you,” Kouyou confessed, yearning eyes trailing over Yuu’s lips. “Can I kiss you?”

It wasn’t like he had to ask; Yuu wouldn’t have objected, either way, since Kouyou was already paying him for his time.

The raven just gave Kouyou a shy nod, and it was enough response for the blond, who leaned in promptly and tilted his head to the side, pressing his lips softly against Yuu’s.

Yuu fluttered his eyes close slowly and felt Kouyou kiss him gently on his lips, over and over again, caressing his lips tenderly with his own. Though there wasn’t any tongue involved, the kiss was gentle and unrushed and sweet, as if Kouyou’s sole purpose was to comfort the raven and reassure him everything would be okay. Yuu felt loved and protected under his gaze and touches, and Yuu only fluttered his eyes back open when Kouyou drew apart reluctantly, his dark, inscrutable eyes smiling to the raven.

“You’re so soft,” Kouyou remarked, bringing a finger to his lips. Yuu looked away abashedly, holding the flowers close to him.

“You’re not supposed to say things like that,” Yuu bemoaned, embarrassed.

Kouyou laughed. “Well, making you smile and blush is quickly becoming my forté.”

Yuu shot him a look. “You’re horrible.”

“Mmm,” Kouyou hummed happily. “But you’re not crying anymore, and that’s all that matters to me.”

Yuu found himself breathing in Kouyou’s familiar cologne as he drove on, taking solace in how safe and protected he felt around the blond.

~

Yuu didn’t know what he was expecting when Kouyou said he’d take him out, but it definitely wasn’t _this_. As the blond drove them into the bustling part of the city and notable high-rise buildings came into the sight, Yuu stilled in his seat, eyes widening as they neared the renowned five-star hotel he knew cost at least a thousand to stay per night.

Why was Kouyou bringing him to a hotel, even though it was only swiftly approaching afternoon, and there was _no_ way Yuu would be able to stay the night with Kouyou today, considering he had early classes tomorrow? Besides, Kouyou hadn’t mentioned anything about Yuu staying over! What exactly was the blond planning?

“W-Why are we going to a hotel?” Yuu voiced out with a stutter, hesitance clear in his voice.

Kouyou simply smiled to him, realizing Yuu’s concern. “We’re not paying for a room here, don't worry. They just happen to have the best masseurs here, and I thought it’d be nice to get us both a massage.” Yuu only calmed down after Kouyou’s explanation, heaving a sigh of relief.

The blond frowned immediately at his reaction.

“You sound _way_ too happy that you’re not getting a room with me.”

“It’s not that!” Yuu rushed to answer. “It’s just… I thought we were taking things slow, that’s all,” the raven bit his lip, looking away. Kouyou seemed determined not to rush things with him so far, doing nothing on the first date and only kissing him gently on the lips on the second. Kouyou struck him as the type to make sex worth the wait, although Yuu had no idea why Kouyou wasn’t springing sex on him already. If Yuu was being paid for his time, Kouyou might as well take advantage of it. The blond didn’t seem like the type to do so, though.

“We are,” Kouyou agreed, without any further word, and drove up to the front of the hotel. The valet standing by the side then walked over to pull the car doors open, and he seemed to recognize Kouyou’s face (or car), for he greeted a resounding _welcome back and enjoy your stay_ to the blond as he got out. After dropping his car keys into the valet’s open palm, Kouyou then strode over to Yuu’s side, leading him into the hotel.

Yuu hadn’t really been able to take a good look at Kouyou in the car, since the large bouquet of flowers managed to block most of Kouyou’s figure from him, but now that they were standing side-by-side, he realized Kouyou had ditched the work clothes for a casual plunging V-neck white shirt paired with dark jeans. The shirt showed off his toned chest really well, and Kouyou had worn a long silver necklace to accompany it, which was something Yuu thought looked really hot on him.

Kouyou spoke to the receptionist over the counter and she seemed to recognize him immediately as well, so Yuu knew Kouyou _must_ be a regular guest here. Was he only here for the masseurs or did he stay here often as well? Yuu made a mental note to ask him later. After conversing with the receptionist and making sure the masseurs were free to attend to him and his guest today (Yuu had a slight suspicion that even if they weren’t, they would make time for someone of Kouyou’s status anyway), Kouyou led Yuu to the lift lobby to wait for a lift to bring them up.

“They all know you pretty well,” Yuu commented, taking in his surroundings. The hotel was decorated in red and gold linen, easily resembling royalty, and the floor was carpeted throughout. He had been in this hotel once or twice before, but only for grand occasions such as weddings; Kouyou probably came here on a weekly basis. Sometimes it was so easy to forget their differences – that Kouyou was a big-shot CEO and Yuu was just his little make-believe boyfriend. Yuu suddenly felt intimidated, an emotion he’d never felt before even around his other sugar daddies.

“Well, we frequently hold meetings with VIPs who have flown in here specially to meet us. Or if I just had a long week and I don’t feel like going home, I just book a room for the weekend and entertain myself with the recreational activities here. Their facilities are top-notch.” Kouyou answered, as a matter-of-factly. Yuu shook his head, smiling, wondering if Kouyou even realized _normal_ class citizens like Yuu didn’t have that sort of routine, or privilege to afford even one night here.

“Maybe I can take you here more often if I’m spending my weekends with you, now,” Kouyou continued, smiling hopefully to the raven. Yuu laughed, nodding his head.

“That would be nice. More than nice, actually. I’d love to spend my weekends casually in five-star hotels.”

Yuu’s words brought ideas to the blond’s head, and Kouyou’s lips curved into a smirk automatically after. “Plus, didn’t you say you like exciting things? There’s plenty to do here. Plenty for _us_ to do, too.”

Yuu raised an eyebrow to him, questioning. So Kouyou was being daring, now. He seemed to be getting more and more comfortable with the raven, dropping his polite front.

“Says the man who doesn’t kiss me for more than two minutes.”

The blond broke into chuckles. “Oh, you’re complaining, already? I thought you’d like that whole romantic shtick.”

Yuu frowned at his answer, the blond’s words punching him faintly in the gut. Romantic shtick? Had Kouyou been pretending and putting on a façade for him all these time after all? Then again, it wasn’t like Yuu had been completely honest about his personality, either. It wasn’t as if Yuu was all smiles and laughter always – his cheery front was only put on to make his sugar daddies happy. So, he couldn’t really fault Kouyou if his niceness was just a fake front, could he? Or was Yuu over-thinking matters again?

It was then that the lift came, and they hurried into it. Kouyou dug into his pocket for his wallet, then took a card from it to scan it against the detector in the lift, before pressing the level they were supposed to ascend to.

“So,” Yuu continued their conversation from where they left off, uncomfortable with the blond’s answer from before. “It’s not all just an act, is it?”

Kouyou turned to him, surprised by the question. He hadn’t expected Yuu to linger on his answer, but then it occurred to him that Yuu might have taken it the wrong way, and was thus affected by it. Heaving a low sigh, he gazed back into Yuu’s eyes apologetically, with a kind of seriousness that Yuu hadn’t expected.

“I know I’m paying you for your time, but that doesn’t mean I only want to use you for sex, Aoi.” Kouyou started, his lips in a frown. “I’m paying you to talk to me, to share your thoughts with me, to go on dates with me and make me feel… well, happy. And so far, I’ve enjoyed all my time spent with you, Aoi. You… You,”

Kouyou hesitated, as if unsure if he should reveal his whole-hearted emotions to the raven.

“You overwhelm me with feelings I can’t explain, and I just want you to be happy. So, when I kiss you, I’m kissing you the way I want to. And if I want to do _this_ – ”

Then, without warning, the blond pushed Yuu back against the wall, causing the raven to stagger back helplessly. Kouyou’s hands roughly restrained Yuu’s arms up above his head in a snap, pinning him down with the heavy weight of his body in a second. Yuu froze in a state of shock, eyes opened wide; and he could feel Kouyou’s breath against his face, with how close their faces were touching now; and there was something so foreign about the way the blond was gazing to him now, tainted with lust and desire and a certain kind of danger that _almost_ frightened Yuu.

“If I want to do this to you,” Kouyou asserted, his breath hot and heavy against the raven. “I can. And I’ll do it anytime I want, because I know I have this power over you.”

“But you don’t,” Yuu babbled, stupefied.

“Because I want to take it slow.” Kouyou coaxed, his voice gentler now. He pulled slowly away from Yuu and lay a hand against Yuu’s hair, stroking past it softly, his face settling into a small smile. “I want to kiss you and savor you and pamper you and give you what you deserve and then–” Kouyou cleared his throat, hinting at darker ventures.

“Make it worth it. Maybe because I’m the kind of man who likes to fatten up his prey.”

Yuu relaxed slightly, now that things were finally coming to light. “I’m assuming you don’t mean that literally,” Yuu said softly.

At the end of the day, this was what they had signed up for, after all. A sugar daddy and baby relationship. With no strings attached. That was all to it. Kouyou was the hunter, and Yuu was his willing prey. Perhaps Yuu had been mistaken there was something more to Kouyou’s kindness after all; when really it was just the blond’s personality to be naturally accommodating and considerate to whoever was with him.

“So, you’re more cunning than you seem.” Yuu murmured, continuing, lips moving up into a wry smile. “Though, I should have expected that from the start. Men like you are all the same.”

Kouyou’s eyes flashed to him in amusement. “Men like me? Am I being generalized now?”

The lift doors opened then, and they stepped out, heading quickly into the direction of the spa.

Yuu tilted his head to the side, slightly relieved now, his eyes glinting daringly to him. “Well, then I guess you’ll just have to prove me wrong. That you’re not like the others. That you’re something… _unique_.”

Kouyou stifled back a laugh. “And to think you were just crying awhile ago. It’s easy for you to snap back into your playful vixen mode, isn’t it?”

Yuu giggled, putting on his flirty act. “I’m like this if you spoil me too much.”

Kouyou smiled. “That’s enough for me, anyway. I brought you out today to spoil you. If you weren’t happy, I’d blame it on myself.”

Yuu briefly wondered at that moment what could possibly have triggered Kouyou’s ex-lover to leave such a man like him, when the ex-lover could have had it all – Kouyou’s looks, body, wealth, status – and most importantly, genuine love from the blond’s heart.

Yuu shook it off, putting on the biggest smile on his face he could afford. It didn’t matter, anyway. It wouldn’t ever matter. Kouyou had brought him out to be pampered today, and Yuu was going to soak it all up.

~

The massage went by extremely well. Yuu and Kouyou were required to get undressed and don only a white towel around their waist, and it afforded the raven a short (but worthwhile) glimpse of Kouyou’s bare chest. Yuu felt his cheeks grow hot at the sight, gazing to Kouyou’s chiseled chest whenever the blond wasn’t paying attention; his muscles looking as if they had been perfectly sculptured by the Gods themselves. Yuu would have reached out a hand to cop a feel had the masseurs not usher them quickly to the massage table, taking away any sort of opportunity Yuu would have to get up close with Kouyou’s body.

Yuu briefly wondered how it would feel like to have feel Kouyou’s muscular body grind against him, strong arms holding his hips as he fucked ruthlessly into him…

OK, Yuu was _so_ not getting an erection now. Not while getting a massage half-naked, nope.

The masseurs turned out to be as good as Kouyou said, and Yuu hadn’t realized he had needed a good-quality massage so much until he felt those skilled hands knead at his shoulders, relaxing all the tensed muscles he had. Massages were a luxury that only some people could afford, and Yuu had neither the time nor money to spend on it before. The raven ended up relaxing during the massage so much that he fell asleep on the massage table without realizing it; and when the 90 minute massage was over, Kouyou had asked the masseurs to leave them alone, saying he’d let Yuu sleep for awhile before waking him up.

“Hello, Kouyou speaking. … _Oh_ , it’s you. …Yes, I believe we agreed on settling on the former last Thursday. Did any problems crop up? …Mm-hmm. You can take that to my PA, I’ll get her to fax me first thing tomorrow morning,” were the first words Yuu woke up to, whilst he droned in and out of his consciousness in a sleepy state.

His heavy eyelids eventually staggered open to a hazy vision of Kouyou pacing back and forth in front of him, holding his cellphone close to his ear. Was he talking to a business associate? Perhaps the CEO of a company? Yuu yawned tiredly as his vision cleared, focusing on the now-dressed Kouyou speaking in a low, quiet voice over the phone. His forehead was creased and his lips were in a deep-set frown. Yuu found the sight unusual; the blond was usually smiling, laughing or giving that god-awful smirk to him. He’d never seen Kouyou look so… well, _dead_.

“No, revisions aren’t unacceptable now. If there’s a problem with the warehouse, you’ll have to settle with them yourself,” Kouyou continued, snapping this time. Yuu momentarily shivered at the sharp tone... Kouyou could be _extremely_ demanding if he wanted to be. “…Well, _no_. We’ll go ahead with what was discussed. You will follow my instructions, _yes_?”

Yuu didn’t know if now was the time to get up and reveal he was awake, but since Kouyou had his back turned to him and was so seemingly engrossed in his conversation, the raven didn’t think the blond would notice. Yuu quietly propped himself up on the massage table and quickly grabbed his clothes lying by the side to change out into them.

He’d only managed to get his jeans on when Kouyou turned to him and noticed he was up.

“Yes, that will be all to it. Goodbye.” Kouyou finished quickly upon seeing Yuu, not even bothering to wait for a reply as he ended the phone call. The aggravated look on his face went away in an instant once his eyes fell on Yuu, and a gentle smile quickly replaced his frown.

“You’re up,” Kouyou greeted, seating himself down on the massage table next to Yuu. Yuu tossed his shirt over himself and tugged it down, then looked over apologetically to the blond.

“Sorry I fell asleep,” Yuu mumbled, embarrassed. Kouyou just shook his head and slithered an arm around his waist, holding him closer to the blond. Yuu shifted in his grasp, getting the hint, and subsequently leaned in closer to Kouyou. “How long was I out for?”

“Well, not counting the massage, only a half-hour or so.” Kouyou answered, raising a hand to fleetingly brush against Yuu’s cheek. “Though, you looked so cute fast asleep, I had to resist leaning over to kiss you.”

Yuu laughed, looking to him with a playful grin. “So, you’re the type to take advantage of people when they’re asleep?”

Kouyou’s eyes held a hint of spark. “Not usually. But I think when it comes to you, I’d like to take advantage of everything.” They were seated so closely to each other that Yuu could feel Kouyou’s hot breath on his skin, and he noticed Kouyou’s breathing was getting heavier as he spoke.

“Maybe you should,” Yuu teased cutely, leaning his head up a little, mischievous eyes taunting Kouyou’s ones.  “Take advantage of me more, I mean.”

The blond’s obscure eyes dimmed, looking predatory all of a sudden. “Don’t say things like that,” he whispered, his tone serious. He gazed to Yuu’s lips, lustful eyes never pulling away from the sight.

Yuu’s heart drummed loudly in his chest. “ _Make_ me.”

Kouyou didn’t need to be told twice.

He dipped his head down to Yuu’s lips in the next moment, capturing them in a soft kiss. Only this time he was biting at Yuu’s lower lip; his next kiss growing more aggressive, easing Yuu’s lips open with a yank of his teeth. The raven could tell what he wanted and wasn’t hesitant to part his lips, allowing Kouyou’s tongue to easily glide in.

They kissed for a while, with Kouyou’s arms tightening around Yuu’s waist, and Yuu’s hands travelling up Kouyou’s chest, tugging lightly at his low V-neck shirt. He savored Kouyou’s taste on his tongue as the blond dominated him easily in their kiss, crumbling the raven into weak whimpers underneath him. As Yuu let slip a soft, contented moan from the back of his throat, he heard Kouyou growl quietly in return, and in the next second he was pushing Yuu eagerly down against the massage table, kissing him hungrily as he crawled atop of him.

It was getting hotter and hotter by the minute, and Yuu hazily looked up to Kouyou with half-lidded eyes, wondering if Kouyou would take things a step further and fuck him right then and there. It wasn’t like it was the worst place to have sex in – they already had bottles of oil ready in a corner, and there were towels ready to clean them up. Plus, for the first time in his sugar dating game, Yuu was feeling _extremely_ aroused by the man before him, liking the amount of control Kouyou was exerting over him. Kouyou couldn’t look hotter, with his rough lips pulling him into harsh kisses, never leaving Yuu’s lips unattended.

Yuu grinded up into Kouyou’s hips, pressing right up against his crotch like the slutty tease that he was. Kouyou made low sounds of approval, kissing him harder and eliciting louder moans from the raven; with his hands trailing down Yuu’s body, slipping behind impatiently to grope at Yuu’s ass.

Just as Yuu thought Kouyou was going to start peeling at his clothes, the blond’s phone rang.

“Fuck!”

Kouyou pulled away from Yuu with the most ferocious glare on his face, cursing loudly in displeasure. He pulled his phone out from his pocket, answering the phone with much disdain. “Fuck that fucking useless PA of mine.”

Yuu couldn’t help but laugh softly to himself at the sight. He’d never seen the CEO look so angry before, and he wondered if Kouyou was always like this when it came to work matters. God, Yuu shouldn’t be thinking this, but Kouyou sounded and looked so goddamn _hot_ when he was angry. It was such a drastic charge from the nice, gentle persona Kouyou had shown him so far, and Yuu liked the thoughtfulness, but coupled with his dangerous, hostile work personality, Kouyou was the _perfect_ man.

“Hello, Kouyou speaking,” The blond said in between gritted teeth, clutching the phone with an unbelievably pissed off look on his face.

“OK, if this is regarding the shit we’ve already discussed, just file it and I’ll take a look at it Monday morning. Yes. _Yes_. I already told you. No – wait – _fuck_. Are you serious? I don’t have time–”

Kouyou looked over concernedly to Yuu as he listened attentively to what was being spoken on the phone. The raven felt his stomach twist at Kouyou’s expression – he could guess what the blond was going to say, already.

“Fine. I’ll be over in an hour or so. Keep my office open. Yes. See you. Goodbye.”

Yuu tried to hide the disappointment on his face, having wanted to spend the rest of the day with Kouyou. “Are you going already?”

Kouyou’s face was grim. “I’m sorry, sweetheart, but I have important matters to attend to. My assistant’s calling for me to return to the office. And I had wanted to take you out for lunch and dinner, too.”

Yuu feigned a smile, shaking his head frantically. “It’s okay! If you need to get to your office as soon as possible, I can take a bus home myself.” Kouyou’s face darkened at his suggestion. “Or not.” Jesus. Kouyou could get pretty scary at times.

“I’ll take you to the gas station,” Kouyou said, the annoyance on his face only going away when he saw Yuu meekly nodding to him. He let out a long sigh. “No – it’s not that – I just… I’m just annoyed, I thought I could have the whole day to spend time with you. I promised to cheer you up, and a good massage was barely it. You’ll forgive me, right?” And then the blond was seating himself down next to Yuu once more, eyes regretfully gazing into Yuu’s.

Yuu just smiled cheerfully to him and nodded. Kouyou returned a small smile back to him, and as he leaned his lips over and kissed the tip of Yuu’s hair gently, the raven basked happily in the kiss.

“You can take me out again another day,” Yuu cooed, snuggling into Kouyou’s touch. “Plus, the massage was good! It was superb. I feel all better already. Especially with you.”

Kouyou grinned at his words. “That’s a relief. I would feel horrible otherwise.”

Yuu laughed. “It’s not like you made me mad, or anything. I’m already so happy you decided to hear me out when I was upset and wanted to make me feel better about it. It _really_ is so much better than staying at home and crying to myself.”

Kouyou emitted low chuckles, shaking his head to Yuu. “You’re too beautiful to cry. If anything happens with your roommate afterwards, you have to tell me, okay? If he’s being mean to you again, I won’t hesitate to teach him a lesson.”

Yuu giggled at the thought. There was no way Yutaka was winning a fight against Kouyou’s built body. Yuu mentally noted that he couldn’t overdo his ranting about Yutaka to Kouyou _too_ much… He didn’t fancy having his roommate beat up by his hot as hell sugar daddy.

…As much as an asshole Yutaka had been to him earlier today.

“We’ll see each other this Saturday, right?” Yuu asked, smiling widely up to Kouyou.

Kouyou cocked his head to the side, a smile on his lips. “Yeah. Actually, I’ll try to clear out my weekend for you. Do you… Do you want to stay over?”

There must have been confusion and hesitance in Yuu’s eyes because the blond was rushing to reassure him in the next moment.

“I’ll pay you more, of course. For your time. I know it’s precious. I just – I just really want to see you more often. And I know we agreed on the once a week thing, but somehow seeing you two days so far doesn’t even feel enough for me. I think I might be going about this the wrong way,” Kouyou admitted sheepishly. Yuu smiled fondly at Kouyou’s expression – he looked unnecessarily nervous, and Yuu wondered why the blond was anxious that Yuu would refuse him.

Yuu placed his hand comfortingly on Kouyou’s lap and nodded eagerly to the blond.

“It’s fine, Kouyou, I’d love to stay over.” Yuu knew that also meant Kouyou was most likely going to fuck him then. Today’s kissing had left the both of them _wanting_ , and it tore Yuu apart to think of the next five days without coming into physical contact with the blond. “Let’s go, alright? I don’t want to keep you from your work anymore.”

Kouyou looked relieved at Yuu’s answer.

“Okay,” the blond said, smiling warmly to the raven.

~

Kouyou dropped him off at the gas station as usual, but the envelope of cash that he passed to Yuu was thicker this time.

“Here’s $1500,” Kouyou informed, saying it so casually Yuu wondered if it meant anything to him at all.

“I thought we agreed on $1250,” Yuu mumbled, but he beamed at the sight of more cash anyway. It wasn’t even the second week of the month and he was getting enough cash to tide him over for two months, already.

“Go buy something nice for yourself on my account,” Kouyou smiled, and Yuu went giddy at his words. Kouyou was treating him so well, and they had only known each other for a week. Yuu couldn’t wait to see how much better this treatment would get when their relationship developed. Usually sugar daddies increased their allowance for him once they got to having sex, but Kouyou was already paying him so much, and Yuu wasn’t sure if Kouyou would be willing to further increase that amount – not that Yuu would mind. Kouyou was paying him enough, already.

“You’re the best, _daddy_!” Yuu exclaimed, throwing his arms around the blond happily. Kouyou was surprised by the raven’s use of that term, but it wasn’t like he didn’t welcome it. Yuu had never called him that before face-to-face, and Kouyou found himself liking being called _daddy_ more than he should.

“Stop being so cute,” Kouyou chuckled, moving a hand to pet affectionately against Yuu’s hair. The raven nuzzled contentedly into Kouyou’s neck, only pulling away to lean up to plant a quick kiss against Kouyou’s lips. Kouyou gazed to the raven with a longing look as Yuu moved away to push at the car door, clutching the envelope and the bouquet of roses he’d received from the blond earlier close to his chest.

“See ya,” Yuu bade him goodbye with a flirty wink, and a wide grin on his face.

“See you,” Kouyou heard himself saying, eyes never pulling away from Yuu’s form as he reluctantly drove away from the raven’s presence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this update came late. I figured I'd posted the first three chapters too quickly so I wanted to pace my updates a little.
> 
> Also I'm in the middle of a ton of assignments. But no worries, I'll do my best to update regularly, because I already have a lot of content written out for this one :)
> 
> Comments are appreciated!


	5. Chapter 5

Yuu had almost forgotten the real reason he’d left the house (actually, Yuu forgot he had been upset at all) – until he reached his apartment and heard his stomach growling. He hadn’t had an opportunity to eat at all, after missing breakfast and then heading out with Kouyou to the massage place. A quick look to his watch showed that it was already approaching two in the afternoon, and Yuu’s stomach clearly was starving for something to fill him up. He wondered if Yutaka would want take-out with him, and _then_ realized he’d just had a big fight with the brunet that ended up with him storming out of the house.

Suddenly Yuu wasn't so hungry anymore. With a churning stomach, he entered his apartment; half-hoping Yutaka was still out so they could avoid any awkward confrontational situation.

Of _course_ , with Yuu’s kind of luck, Yutaka was back. He could tell by the sound of loud stir-frying in the kitchen, and the mouth-watering smell of Yutaka’s appetizing food. Yutaka had always been the better cook out of the two, and when questioned about it, Yutaka just brushed it off as having plenty of practice cooking sessions with his mother when he was younger. He always spoke fondly of her, and it was obvious they spent a lot of time together during Yutaka’s childhood. The first time Yuu had joined Yutaka’s family for dinner at his parent’s house, he’d taken one look at the brunet’s mother and immediately saw the resemblances in the both of them.

Not only did Yutaka take after his mother’s warm-hearted and captivating personality, the brunet’s looks were also _practically_ modeled after hers. Yuu could tell they were good people, and it reaffirmed his decision to allow Yutaka into his life. Yuu was rather selective when it came to friends, but Yutaka had been nothing but kind to him so far, and Yuu knew Yutaka was one of those who would stick around.

Yuu just hoped he hadn’t thought wrong about the brunet. Perhaps the incident in the morning was a one-off thing, and Yutaka had been too stressed by university lately. Yuu briefly wondered if Yutaka was currently cooking for two, or if he hadn’t taken Yuu into account… Yuu hoped to God he had. The raven was _starving_ , and the divine smell of Yutaka’s cooking wasn’t helping ease his hunger very much.

“You’re back,” Yutaka suddenly called from the kitchen, just as Yuu eased their apartment door shut behind him and placed down the roses he’d received from Kouyou onto a nearby table.

Yuu jolted up a little, surprised by the warm greeting. Yutaka was speaking to him again? And in his usual friendly tone, too. Yuu was puzzled by the sudden change in his attitude towards him, but he wasn’t complaining. If Yutaka wanted to pretend nothing happened, Yuu could do that, too.

“Did you go out to meet with… one of _them_?” Yutaka’s voice continued, some hostility still evident in his voice. _So_ , it looked like he was still slightly annoyed after all. Yuu bit his lip, wondering why Yutaka was suddenly so mad at him going out with his sugar daddies. Yutaka never had a problem with it before.

“I didn’t,” Yuu lied, quickly hiding the bouquet in an indiscernible corner, before stepping into the kitchen.

Yutaka was clad in his red-checkered apron as usual, and as he turned to face him, Yutaka’s features visibly relaxed when they lay upon the raven’s face.

Yuu saw a hint of an apologetic smile upon Yutaka’s lips, and felt confusion bubbling up in him. Was Yutaka not mad at him anymore? Were they okay now? It looked like he was getting his explanation next, however, because the brunet was soon breaking into an apology.

“Yuu, I’m sorry about earlier. It’s just – I didn’t do as well as I thought I would for an exam, and I got really pissed and went out drinking because of it. I didn’t have anything to take my anger out on, so I…” Yutaka’s words trailed off, his face looking away in what appeared to be shame.

Yuu felt rather relieved hearing Yutaka’s explanation, now that he knew it wasn’t because he had done something wrong. The brunet sighed, uttering the rest of his apology quietly to the raven. “It was wrong of me. And I shouldn’t have said the things I said to you, Yuu. I was just stressed out from all the studying, sorry.”

Yuu managed a weak smile, shaking his head, “It’s okay, Yutaka! I perfectly understand. You know I’d never fault you for feeling stressed out. I’m just glad we’re fine now.”

Yuu had felt shaken up by Yutaka’s outburst earlier, and the raven still wasn't so sure if Yutaka’s words to him could be so easily forgiven, but the raven didn’t want to dwell on it any longer. He just wanted things to be alright between them again, and he would deal with all the negative emotions that set in him later. Yuu and him were okay now, and that was all that mattered to the raven.

As Yuu moved to get the cutlery and set them down on the dining table as he usually did, he caught Yutaka staring at him, a faint smile appearing on his face.

“ _What_?”

Yutaka seemed amused by his behavior. “This is how you do it, don’t you?”

Yuu gave a look of genuine bafflement. “Do what?”

“This is why older men like you so much. You smile and brush everything off like it’s nothing. Even though it’s not. I know you’re upset, Yuu. I was being a huge asshole. Why aren’t you yelling and screaming at me?” Yutaka asked, a tinge of remorse in his tone, shutting the stove off just as he finished cooking.

Yuu felt his heart skip at his words. Yutaka was his best friend, after all. He could mask his emotions from all his sugar daddies, but he couldn’t mask it from the one person who he lived with and saw everyday.

Still, Yuu thought it was worth trying. Yutaka usually didn’t press him to reveal things he didn’t want to reveal, and if Yuu hinted that he wanted to drop a subject, the brunet generally complied.

“I’m not upset, Yutaka. Not anymore, anyway. It’s not worth it.”

Yutaka glanced to him warily, a low sigh leaving his lips.

“Alright, Yuu. But if you ever feel the need to talk to me about it, don’t hesitate. I acknowledge I overreacted when you wanted to take care of me, and I don’t want you to feel like it’s any of your fault.”

“It’s fine, really!” Yuu declared cheerfully, helping Yutaka set the dishes down.

Yutaka sighed as he gazed over to the raven with a look of concern on his face.

“Think of yourself for once,” The brunet chided, folding his arms.

A small smile crept up on Yuu’s lips at his words. It was funny, really, because sometimes Yutaka didn’t seem to realize Yuu was an expert in doing just that – being selfish enough to lie to men his love was real and he actually enjoyed being intimate with them. In fact, Yuu was _more_ than an expert. He had even _made_ it into his profession. Did everyone seriously think Yuu was the kind of person he was letting everyone think he was?

He had expected Yutaka to notice, really, that Yuu wasn’t the person he’d let on to be. Yutaka was probably the closest person to him in his life right now, and Yuu had been nothing but transparent to him, but perhaps he was wrong.

Perhaps he had even gotten Yutaka fooled after all.

“Thank you for thinking of me, Yutaka,” Yuu said softly in a reply, eyes flickering up to meet the brunet’s ones in a sweet gaze.

~

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _How’s the roommate? Did he treat you badly after you came home? Tell me you’re safe, love_

Kouyou texted him later that night, just as Yuu was finishing up on the essay he’d been working on. Yuu had heard his phone buzz with a message, and had rushed to it, hoping it would be Kouyou who was texting him. His hopes weren’t in vain.

Of course, Yuu had gotten a bunch of texts from his other sugar daddies as well. Yuu scrolled past them with dull interest, quickly speed-reading all their inferior-sounding messages, before landing onto Kouyou’s one with delight. Yuu grinned widely as he read Kouyou’s message, typing out a reply to him as fast as he could.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i’m safe!!! we talked things out, he was just stressed. so happy that things are well! i’m finishing up uni homework. how was your day, mister? <3 :)_

After making sure his message had sent successfully to Kouyou, Yuu found himself looking back to his other messages with much disdain.

He’d have to reply the rest of his sugar daddies, now. Compared to Kouyou, who he genuinely enjoyed spending time with, the rest now felt so bland to be with. Yuu knew that it was wrong to feel that way, though. It was what he had chosen to do, and he should be giving the other men his equal attention and time.

It was almost as if after Kouyou stepped into his life, Yuu had suddenly elevated expectations for all the men that were going out with him. Yuu had to remind himself at this point in time that he was doing it for the money, not the enjoyment. His dates paid him well, and that was all that mattered. Yuu didn’t have to like their faces or personality to do so (which was also precisely why these men had to resort to sugar dating). It just so happened that Kouyou was, _well,_ an all-in-one package. Kouyou _definitely_ didn’t need sugar-dating, and it was just pure luck that Yuu landed this one on his hands.

Yuu ended up replying to the rest of their messages one by one with a small sigh, scheduling more dates for the month.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _sure! thurs is fine, miss you so much xx can’t wait to see you again! <3_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i’m doing well, i’m so stressed out tho! :( want you to pamper and spoil me so i can feel better again <3_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i hope work has been good to you, baaby! next tue is fine, how long will you be staying in town this time? x_

Kouyou replied him just as the raven finished texting the others, and seeing Kouyou’s name on his screen lit up Yuu’s face once more.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Happy to hear that things went well… Work was fine, still angry they took away time I could have spent with you. The upcoming week will be hectic for me, but I’ve already told my PA to clear out my weekend. Can’t wait to see you then._

Yuu eyed his message dreamily, eagerly typing a message back.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _can’t wait to see you too… <3 you were sooo good to me today, you care so much for me. i’m so loved. wanna kiss you again_

The words left his fingers without meaning to. He’d never told a sugar daddy he’d wanted to kiss him again before, most likely because – plainly – he _really_ didn’t want to have to kiss them again. He only did it because he was obliged to, and it guaranteed him a higher payout.

But Kouyou was different; Kouyou’s touches on him had set him on fire, and Yuu dreaded the next five days without them. He could still remember Kouyou aggressively pushing him down against the massage table, lips never leaving his mouth. Hungry tongues twisting around each other, breaths hot against each other’s skin. Yuu could even still hear Kouyou’s low groan in the back of his head…

…Oh, Yuu was _so_ making their upcoming weekend worth it.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Wanna kiss you too…_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Stop making me want to see you again. I get that you’re probably using some sort of charm on me, but it’s working so well it’s horrible. I don’t know if I regret messaging you in the first place, I’m addicted_

Yuu smiled broadly at the message.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _what’s so bad about getting addicted to me? i’m sweet and cute and i can make you happy… :)_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Precisely. I’m fucked._

Yuu laughed all the way to sleep.

~

Some way or another, Yuu survived the school week without seeing the blond. Yutaka and him went back to how it was before, though it was apparent that Yutaka was lightening up a lot more now as a person, too. He still studied his medical textbooks and did his work religiously as usual, but he also set aside time on some days to accompany Yuu to watch the television, or random movies that the raven would put on when he was bored.

Yuu thought that Yutaka was trying to be sweet in his own way, to show that he still cared for the raven and wanted to show some form of appreciation for Yuu. Yuu liked the sentiment, of course, and continued to shamelessly envelop Yutaka into frequent warm, tight hugs. Yuu liked embarrassing Yutaka so.

Kouyou texted him on a daily basis throughout the week, and the both of them talked about mundane things they did throughout the day – with heavy flirting going on in their texts as usual. It always made Yuu’s day to see Kouyou’s messages, though Yuu always reminded himself it was just a superficial relationship and that he needn’t get so attached. Nevertheless, it didn’t hurt to _enjoy_ your job, right? Plus, the thirty-five year old CEO had it bad for him, and if there was anyone that was attached, it was _him_. Yuu knew he didn’t have to worry about anything.

Friday night soon approached, and as Kouyou and Yuu were on the phone together, discussing their plans for the weekend, Yuu lounged on his bed, spoiling himself with a self-manicure.

It seemed like Kouyou had thought out how they would be spending their Saturday already, though. He filled Yuu in on the details, while the raven absentmindedly hummed and nodded along to the blond’s voice on the phone.

“I’ll pick you up from the gas station around two in the afternoon. We’ll grab some lunch and then I’ll take you out shopping. Or we could go see a movie, whichever you prefer. We’ll have dinner afterwards, then I’ll take you to my place and we can… spend the rest of the night there.” His last words were heavily connoted, and Yuu chose to pretend not notice it.

“Ooh, I wonder what kind of house you stay in,” Yuu cooed to the blond, always so ready to find news things to be excited about. Kouyou laughed at his enthusiasm. “Do you own a castle?”

“Aoi, I have better things to spend my money on,” Kouyou chuckled at his words, amused at the kind of image Yuu had formed of him as a CEO.

“Clearly not, if you’re wasting it on me,” The raven sang happily as a reply. “Not like I’m complaining.”

Kouyou let out an exasperated sigh, not agreeing with what Yuu had said. “You are many things, but you are _not_ a waste of my money.”

“I’m priceless, aren’t I?” Yuu then teased, earning himself low chuckles from the blond once more. Yuu grinned, liking the fact that he could make Kouyou happy so easily.

“Indeed you are,” Kouyou agreed, his tone lowering, sounding more serious this time. “Nothing can compare to you, my little flower.”

The raven’s cheeks instinctively turned peach pink at the nickname. “What’s with _that_?” The blond seemed to have made it his goal to reduce Yuu into smiles and blushes every time he was around him.

“Hmm?” Kouyou chuckled at Yuu’s embarrassment. “Doesn’t Aoi mean hollyhock? You’re a type of flower. Aren’t I right?”

“You noticed the denotation,” Yuu laughed, shaking his head. “Not many people do.”

“Well… I have to be some sort of smart to be where I am, you know,” Kouyou answered, returning his laugh. “I don’t get paid for nothing.”

“Mmm. Sometimes I forget you’re a real person,” Yuu admitted, sighing, adding the final touches to his black-painted nails. He rolled over in bed lazily, clutching the phone close to his ear. “No way you’re so young and smart and hot and successful at the same time. I refuse to believe it.”

“You know, that’s kind of funny,” Kouyou began, his voice settling into a gentler tone on his end. “Sometimes I wonder how you’re real, too… You’re really dazzling in your own right, you know that?”

Yuu grinned uncontrollably at his words. “So cheeky. How many boys and girls have fallen at your feet with all these pick-up lines?”

“Well,” Kouyou said, rather smugly. “I’m still waiting for your fall.”

~

Other than packing enough clothes for two days, Yuu also threw in a couple of lacey lingerie, wondering if Kouyou liked that sort of thing. Well, if Kouyou was a normal hot-blooded dude with hormones and urges that needed to be satisfied, he most likely would, Yuu thought. The raven was already currentlywearing black lacey panties underneath his tight jeans for today’s lunch date, wanting to give a little surprise to Kouyou when the blond undressed him in his house later that evening (and Kouyou _would_ be undressing him – Yuu would make sure of that).

Yuu sprayed some sweet floral-scented perfume on himself as he prepared to leave the apartment, stepping out into the living room and heading quickly for the door. Yutaka, who had been silently reading on the couch with his reading glasses on, looked up from his book to bid Yuu goodbye.

“Be safe,” Yutaka reminded, his face automatically fixing in a disapproving frown. Yuu had told Yutaka about his plans for the weekend, and needless to say Yutaka didn’t like the idea; Yutaka _never_ approved when Yuu stayed over at his sugar daddy’s place. Not like Yutaka had a say in how Yuu led his life, but Yuu could tell Yutaka would rather Yuu not go and endanger his life in such a way. It was double the risk and danger, and Yutaka had never trusted any of those filthy old men.

 _But Kouyou’s different_ , Yuu had protested to him the night before, putting in endless amounts of good words for Kouyou. _He’s really kind, and he’s very thoughtful, plus he’s so hot._ It still didn't reassure Yutaka one bit, though.

“Promise me you’ll text me the address when you get there, or I’m calling the cops,” Yutaka mumbled, eyeing the raven-haired closely. “You know my phone is switched on 24/7 for you, right?”

Yuu laughed, looking on fondly to the brunet at his concern. “Okay, okay, I promise! Come here and give me a goodbye hug!”

Yutaka didn’t usually reciprocate Yuu’s hugs and showed exasperation at them, but as Yuu leaned in to embrace Yutaka this time, the brunet returned the hug with closed eyes, squeezing the raven tightly in his arms.

“Be safe,” Yutaka repeated to the raven’s ears, this time in a much gentler voice.

“Okay,” Yuu murmured, smiling gratefully to him as he pulled away. He left Yutaka seated there on the couch, gazing to Yuu’s back forlornly as he left for Kouyou’s side.

~

As soon as Yuu was inside Kouyou’s car, the blond was leaning over, hands grabbing for the sides of Yuu’s face, rushing to kiss him hastily on the lips. Yuu giggled softly to himself when Kouyou pulled away, the raven licking his lips happily at the gesture. _Someone’s happy to see me,_ Yuu thought.

“I missed you,” Kouyou moaned, fingers still caressing Yuu’s cheeks. Yuu fluttered his eyes shyly underneath his gaze, heart beating wildly in his chest.

“Missed you too,” Yuu whispered, face beaming under Kouyou’s touches. He leaned over, tilted his head up and gave another peck against Kouyou’s lips.

Kouyou melted at the cute gesture.

“My long week’s all worth it now because of you,” Kouyou grinned, eyes never tearing away from Yuu’s face. “Alright. Let’s have lunch. What do you feel like eating today?”

Yuu pondered over it for a while, at a loss of what to say.

“Hmm. I’m not sure. I’m craving for meat. A burger?”

Kouyou laughed at his answer. “A burger? _Really_? I can buy you any food you want in the world and you ask for a burger.”

Yuu narrowed his eyes to him. “ _You_ make the suggestion, then, handsome.”

Kouyou smirked to him. “You know I always listen you, _babydoll_.”

…So they ended up driving to a fast-food restaurant.

Yuu laughed aloud when they got there, especially when Kouyou parked his shiny, extravagant-looking black Lamborghini in between two family cars in a nearby parking lot. Kouyou _definitely_ did not fit here. Yuu couldn’t hide his amused grin as they got out of the car, wondering if Kouyou even ate at fast food restaurants anymore, given his wealth and status.

Kouyou rolled the long sleeves of his white shirt up as he walked into the fast-food restaurant, and Yuu was treated to yet another delicious sight of his protruding veins. He was wearing jeans as per his usual weekend dressing, and Yuu couldn’t resist checking out Kouyou’s ass in his jeans. The man was pure _sex,_ alright.

As the blond moved to queue behind a line of customers at the cashier, however, Yuu laughed again at the sight, cupping a hand over his mouth to muffle his snickering. Kouyou was probably used to having people serve him at every particular time of the day, and seeing the CEO queue like a normal citizen just… Yuu found it the most hilarious thing he’d seen in a long while.

“You’re so amused by this,” Kouyou muttered, looking over to the raven standing beside him. Yuu smiled innocently back up to him.

“Do you _even_ eat fast food, Kouyou?” Yuu teased.

“Contrary to popular belief, I _don’t_ always dine at five-star restaurants, _no_ ,” Kouyou huffed, narrowing his eyes to the raven. “However, it has indeed been a long time since I ate at a place like this. I can’t actually remember when I last ate a burger.”

Yuu smiled. “Sorry for making you eat peasant food, _daddy_.”

A woman that had been standing in front of them with a kid by her side turned to Yuu immediately at that remark, clearly having been listening in on their conversation. She had a horrified look on, and as her child asked her not-so-discreetly why a grown man like Yuu was calling his _friend_ ‘daddy’, the woman hushed the child and covered his ears.

Yuu couldn’t stop giggling, and he leaned in close to Kouyou, clutching happily at his arm. “Looks like we’re being a nuisance.”

Kouyou laughed. “Aoi, you’re not going to refrain from teasing me like this, are you? What a demanding little flower.” He reached over to pinch at Yuu’s nose playfully a little, and Yuu got him back by tipping on his toes and pecking at his lips. Kouyou’s face lit up after the short kiss, basking in the adorable gesture.

Very soon it reached their turn at the counter, and Kouyou got two set meals for themselves, each meal containing a burger. They carried their trays and headed for an empty table, settling down in an obscure booth at the back of the restaurant. Kouyou had figured Yuu would probably do more _horrible_ things in public, and didn’t want to attract attention to themselves too much.

“You forget I’m quite a prominent figure, Aoi,” Kouyou started off by saying, sighing as he picked his burger up, unwrapping it slowly with his fingers. “I’m already taking quite a risk when I spend time with you in public.”

Yuu felt slightly apologetic as he reached for his own burger. “Sorry.” He didn’t know why he was being so playful with Kouyou, when usually with his other sugar daddies he went along with whatever they wanted and didn’t cross any lines.

With Kouyou, it felt as if Yuu could treat him with far less tact, knowing Kouyou wouldn’t be as mad at him even if Yuu overstepped a boundary. Perhaps it was because their age difference wasn’t as big as with his other sugar daddies, or perhaps because blond had been nothing but kind and patient with him so far, and it was spoiling the raven too much.

Yuu wondered if Kouyou was starting to regret giving in to him so much.

“It’s okay,” Kouyou reassured, always seemingly knowing what the raven was thinking, and he quickly placed his hand over Yuu’s on the table. He tenderly stroked Yuu’s fingers, a tinge of worry evident on his face. “I’m not angry at you or anything, babe. I just think it’d be better if we just enjoyed our time together and not spend it trying to um, scare little children in public.”

Yuu glanced over to him with a small smile, eyes grateful that Kouyou wasn’t too mad at him. For some reason it scared him a little to think that he was being overboard – he felt bad that he’d made Kouyou uncomfortable with his antics in public.

“It’s okay, really! I mean, I’m young and I’m cute, and I occasionally forget what I can do and can’t do. Plus, you’re paying me for my time, so you can tell me whatever you want me to be! I won't feel offended, Kouyou.”

Kouyou reclined in his seat at his words then, frowning as he took a bite of his burger. Yuu watched him carefully as he did so. Even the way Kouyou ate was precise and delicate; he made sure not to dirty his fingers, and he took modest bites at a time. Yuu wondered if all people of prestigious positions acted this way – or were they already too used to having to put on a professional façade in front of everyone they met, afraid acting any otherwise would be rude?

“Aoi, I don’t… want you think of our relationship like that,” Kouyou suddenly said quietly, his eyes downcast. Yuu’s heart halted momentarily at his words, surprised. Kouyou sounded unusually concerned, and Yuu wondered if he’d accidentally given off the impression he’d been hurt by Kouyou’s words. Because he wasn’t, _really_. He had just been anxious he’d annoyed the older man.

The blond continued. “I know we constantly emphasize this is just a superficial relationship, but… At the end of the day, I want you to feel happy and comfortable with me, too. Because seeing you happy makes me happy, and that’s why I want to pamper you as much as possible. I don’t want you to act like someone you’re not.”

Yuu bit back the words that wanted to leave past his lips. _I’m already someone I’m not,_ Yuu thought, but it never left his mouth.

“You’re this cute, young, pretty thing, and seeing you smile is the most heavenly sight on earth,” Kouyou sighed once more, looking on to Yuu with a fond expression on his face. Yuu felt his heart trepidate at his words. “And when you’re upset, Aoi, I get this constricting feeling in my heart, and it pains me. I want you to be happy, to be _yourself_ , like this forever.”

Yuu took a small bite out of his burger, chewing thoughtfully, before responding as cheerfully as he could.

“I understand, Kouyou. I’m fine, really! You didn’t say anything wrong. I’m good.” He accompanied his words with a sweet wide smile, nodding his head along as he spoke.

Kouyou’s eyes gazed to him, doubtful. Yuu was _not_ prepared for what came next.

“I said something wrong,” Kouyou begun, suddenly sounding annoyed at himself. “Fuck.”

Yuu’s heart skipped a beat at the sight. Did Kouyou care for him to that extent? The older man actually, _really_ , looked positively irked that he’d possibly hurt the raven-haired.

“You didn’t–”

“I’ll take you out shopping later, and you’ll tell me what you want.” Kouyou demanded, all at once looking _so_ crossed at himself. “Do you need a new phone? A Macbook? Tell me how much your bills are this month, I’ll write you a cheque.”

Yuu felt his heart lurch and his stomach churn. “It’s fine, Kouyou, it’s nothing. You didn’t offend me whatsoever. I’m good, really.”

Kouyou still looked skeptical. “Aoi, I – I don’t – I don’t want you to change. Fuck, forget I said anything. Call me what you want. It doesn’t matter to me.”

Yuu’s heart twisted further. Kouyou was _really_ affected by how Yuu thought of him. It made him wonder if Kouyou realized that _he_ was the one in control of their relationship, not Yuu. And somehow, Yuu felt uncomfortable at the thought that Kouyou cared so much for him.

This wasn’t how their relationship was supposed to be like. Kouyou was _not_ supposed to give a rat’s ass about him, and Yuu was only here to hear him rant about work and offer him a shoulder to lean on. Yuu was only here to make him feel less lonely, and well, less horny. Yuu was only here to be… _used_. And paid. … _And used_.

Yuu found himself looking away, conflicting emotions bubbling in him. He needed to do something, fast. He needed to find a way to get their relationship back on track. He didn’t want _anything_ to complicate matters. He didn’t want to get too involved.

It was all about the money. Money, money, money… 

“I still have student loans unpaid,” Yuu casually remarked, and Kouyou’s eyes lit up in reply. “It would be nice if they got–”

“Done. Write the details down for me and I’ll pay the balance off,” Kouyou said.

Yuu smiled widely to him on the outside, knowing he should be happy at the prospect of his university education getting paid off at one shot, but inside he felt his heart plummet to the depths of his stomach.

It was just a no strings attached relationship, after all… _right_?

It wasn’t going to last, Yuu reminded himself. None of these relationships ever lasted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like Yuu's too hard on himself. 
> 
> Maybe that's why I make Kouyou pamper him so much - to make up for it. 
> 
> Anyway <3 hope you guys enjoyed this again! I love reading your thoughts on this story, so do let me know :)


	6. Chapter 6

Kouyou ended up splurging on Yuu when they headed out to shop later on, going into name brand stores and picking out exorbitantly priced clothes and accessories for the raven. Yuu tried to refuse them, but as long as Yuu’s eyes lingered a second too long on an item, or Kouyou felt the accessory looked great on Yuu, Kouyou would buy it for him. Yuu knew Kouyou was still feeling guilty about having accidentally hurt his feelings – even though Yuu knew he wasn’t, _really_ – but he wasn’t protesting if Kouyou decided to make it up to him through expensive gifts like these. Yuu was his to spoil, anyway.

They were at Yves Saint Lauren, purchasing a mint scarf for the raven, when the woman at the cashier seemed all _too_ interested in the blond and raven’s relationship. She had giggled to Yuu as she passed the shopping bag to him, looking over to Kouyou with a dreamy look on her face, watching as the blond CEO wandered around the sunglasses section at the back, trying on some of them for fun in the mirror. 

“How did you get such a rich and hot boyfriend?” The woman had furiously whispered to Yuu, swooning at the sight of Kouyou. “You are _so_ lucky. I wish I had a boyfriend who would spend $120 on a scarf for me.”

Yuu’s cheeks turned pink at the term ‘ _boyfriends’_ being used. “Well, we’re not… _really_ … boyfriends.” 

The woman looked surprised. “Oh? You both looked pretty into each other. Does that mean he’s up for grabs?”

Yuu found himself giving the woman a dirty look, suddenly feeling possessive. “No, he’s not.” 

“Are you done yet?” Kouyou asked then, striding over to his side. He wrapped an arm around Yuu’s waist and pulled him close to him, kissing the tip of his hair. Sensing his chance to show the cashier Yuu already had a claim over the blond, the raven leaned up to kiss Kouyou affectionately on the lips, then drew apart from him, nuzzling his head cutely against Kouyou’s chest. 

“Yes, _daddy_ ,” Yuu cooed cutely.

The raven smirked as he watched the woman’s eyes widen, finally realizing the true nature of their relationship. “Let’s go.” 

“Mmm,” Kouyou agreed, leading Yuu out of the shop. He wasn’t so affected by Yuu’s usage of that term anymore, and the raven liked to think that the blond didn’t care anymore about what people thought of them, since it appeared as if Yuu’s feelings mattered more to him. If feigning hurt was all it took to win Kouyou over to his side, Yuu would have an easy time tightening his hold over the blond. Yuu grew smug at the thought.

“I made reservations for us at a restaurant nearby,” Kouyou murmured, his arm still securely around Yuu’s waist. “Are you hungry yet? We could go there early.” 

“Sure,” Yuu purred contentedly.

~

They ended up having French cuisine this time. Kouyou mindlessly chatted with him about his week as usual, and Yuu nodded and chipped in whenever he could. He liked that Kouyou was starting to open up to him more and treating Yuu like a true conversation partner, since Yuu felt like he’d been making their relationship all about himself all week and hadn’t really had a chance to know Kouyou yet. His other sugar daddies usually liked to talk about themselves and rant about their day’s ventures, not giving Yuu much opportunity to talk on his side; but when it came to Kouyou, the blond seemed to enjoy listening to Yuu too much.

He was glad Kouyou was finally revealing more about himself to him, considering the blond seemed to have been hesitant on telling Yuu too much on their first date. Yuu quickly learnt things like –

“No siblings? At all?” Yuu had asked as they waited for their food, curious.

“Nope. Nada. I’m an only child,” Kouyou answered. Kouyou was just like Yuu then, the raven thought – the both of them were the only child in their family.

Kouyou also revealed a bit about his past relationships.

“I’ve had maybe three serious relationships, but one of them was in high school. So technically, two, I guess. One lasted two years, and the other lasted six.”

Yuu winced at the thought of breaking off such a long-term relationship. “It must have been hard for you.” 

Kouyou shook his head, sipping from his wine glass slowly. “Not really. It was amicable, and we’d been faithful the whole time. Our work just got too much, and it tore us apart. We went weeks without seeing each other, until one day we decided to call it quits.”

Yuu wondered if the split was as painless as Kouyou described. Didn’t a long-term relationship require a ton of hard work and patience to sustain it? It must still have been heartbreaking anyhow, to break it off in the end.

“Did you both ever think about marriage?” The raven asked. 

The blond hesitated for a second before responding. “Yes. We thought about it, but we never felt it was the right time to rush into things. We were both young and successful, and we never wanted a family to ruin it. I guess you could call it selfish on our part.” 

Yuu smiled to him with an understanding look. “It’s not selfish at all. If you aren’t ready, you aren’t ready. It’s better to wait than to rush into something you don’t want, and drag innocent people’s lives into it.” 

Kouyou chuckled to him, nodding agreeably to his words. “How about you, Aoi? Do you plan to get married in the near future?”

The raven contemplated over it for a moment.

“Well… I’m still young, so no. All I really want right now is to pay off all my debts and finish my degree. Then get a job, find someone, and get married only then. Maybe.”

Kouyou’s gaze faltered at his words. “I see. I envy your future partner, then.”

Yuu tried not to think too much about what Kouyou was implying. “You’re not too bad yourself.” 

The blond laughed. “To be honest, I’m not actually sure I ever will jump into marriage, at this rate. I guess I’ll just leave it up to…” Kouyou’s eyes flickered up to meet Yuu’s with a sly look. “…fate. 

“Mmhmm,” Yuu agreed, without much thought. He raised his wine glass and clinked it with Kouyou’s, saying a small ‘cheers’.

They talked about other things as they ate, and Yuu briefly talked about Yutaka as his roommate. Kouyou seemed concerned at the mention of the brunet, but Yuu tried to pacify him by assuring him that Yutaka never meant any harm to the raven as his best friend. 

It was about halfway through the dinner – once Kouyou started talking about an upcoming work project he’d be starting with another business corporation – that Yuu began to grow a little restless. Yuu had accidentally nudged Kouyou’s leg as he shifted in his seat, whilst trying to pretend to look at least entertained by the conversation topic… though he was slowly growing bored to tears. 

Yuu hated this part of sugar dating the most – pretending to look interested in what they were talking about, when Yuu either 1. had no clue what they were going on about, or 2. was too grossed out by the details. Occasionally his sugar daddies would bitch about work politics and rant about some asshole trying to get them fired, but those were the only interesting bits Yuu paid attention to. 

Currently, Kouyou had fallen under category number one – which would be Yuu having no _clue_ what the blond was rambling on and on about. He only knew that Kouyou was all fired up about it and it involved a lot of market shares and a ton of monetary jargons, but the only thing Yuu could concentrate on was the way Kouyou’s sharp cheekbones and his angular jaw moved as he spoke, and the way Kouyou’s eyes lit up and his brows furrowed with every word, and how his shirt currently looked too tight for his broad shoulders, and how much Yuu’d like to peel it off him instead.

But as he gave an accidental kick to the blond’s foot, an idea of how to alleviate his boredom occurred to him. They were planning to have sex later on, anyway, so why not put on a little prologue?

It was time for Operation: Seduction to begin. Yuu put on a serious expression, appearing to be engrossed into the conversation as much as possible, nodding and smiling at Kouyou’s every word.

But underneath the table, he was quickly shaking his shoe off and moving his right foot, sliding it slowly up against the side of Kouyou’s left leg. He traced patterns up and down Kouyou’s skin, humming as he did so, eyes innocently keeping eye contact with the blond.

Kouyou paused midway conversation, eyes narrowing as they looked to Yuu, seemingly realizing what the raven was doing. Yuu dared the blond to say _something_ about it to him, gazing over to Kouyou with a challenging look in his eyes, but for some reason the blond kept his mouth shut, and continued talking.

Yuu was filled with glee as he moved his foot higher and reached Kouyou’s upper part of the leg. He slid over them, caressing up Kouyou’s inner thighs, and heard the blond distinctively draw in a long breath.

“Babydoll,” Kouyou warned, his breath thick and heavy.

Yuu knew he was approaching Kouyou’s sensitive regions, and he wondered if Kouyou found this as arousing as he did, getting footsied in public. The table was covered with a long solid-colored tablecloth, so the chances of people discovering them was minimal; but Yuu liked the excitement of it all, teasing Kouyou underneath the table in a place where anyone could notice them anytime, but yet was completely oblivious to.

“What’s wrong?” Yuu feigned innocence, blinking up wide-eyed to him. He slipped his foot in between Kouyou’s thighs and brushed against his groin. Just a fleeting touch was enough to evoke a groan from Kouyou’s mouth, already, and Yuu giggled at the sight.

Kouyou frowned, attempting to shift away from Yuu’s foot. 

“Babe, not now. We’re eating.” 

“And _I’m_ bored,” Yuu whined. 

The blond sighed. “If you feel bored, perhaps I could suggest we–”

He was immediately silenced when he felt the raven’s foot rub urgently against his crotch, paired with a devious grin on Yuu’s face. 

Kouyou grunted in shock, dropping the fork he had in hand onto the floor immediately. From then on it felt as if _something_ in Kouyou snapped – the tenderness in his eyes immediately disappeared, and he seemed to resemble the person he was when dealing with work matters, the person who was demanding and impatient and… _powerful._  

“…Look at what you’ve done, Aoi.” Kouyou’s low voice was lethal; Yuu had never heard the blond sound more vicious. “You’ve made your _daddy_ unable to eat properly.”

Yuu felt a shiver run down his body. Hearing Kouyou refer to himself as such made Yuu’s skin crawl with anticipation the raven couldn’t handle it. He loved it when Kouyou wasn’t apologizing to him, or being accommodating to Yuu. He loved seeing the older man with the dark eyes and the lustful gazes come out. He _wanted_ the man with his strong arms and his thick veins to put him in his place _so_ bad, he wanted nothing more than to irritate Kouyou to the point where the man _needed_ to punish the raven. He knew that side of Kouyou existed – and he wanted to force him out.

Enough playing and flirting; Yuu wanted the real deal.

“Did I accidentally make you mad?” Yuu looked doe-eyed to him, cocking his head cutely to the side. God, he wanted to _aggravate_ the blond so much. 

“You’re going to regret that,” Kouyou warned, smile turning smug as he gazed to Yuu. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you, sweetheart.”

Yuu pouted, though inside his heart was beating like _crazy_. Had he just crossed over to Kouyou’s dangerous territory?

“ _Daddy_ ,” the raven murmured meekly, flickering his lashes up to the blond. “Aoi’s sorry.”

~

“Daddy!” Yuu gasped, just as Kouyou released him from his grasp and threw him against the king-sized bed in his room. “Aoi’s _sorry_!” 

He’d ended up vexing Kouyou to the point that by the time they’d finished their dinner, Kouyou was so tense and edgy it made Yuu smug with triumphant. The older man had led him back to his car hurriedly, and needless to say the drive home was filled with anxious silence, though Yuu clung on to his seat belt for dear life more than anything, considering Kouyou had been speeding his way home throughout the whole journey. 

They ended up reaching an area of expensive private apartments (Yuu was only _slightly_ disappointed that Kouyou did not, in fact, own a castle) and after Kouyou had driven to the basement and parked his car there, he’d ushered Yuu out of the car, to the lift, face blank and expressionless as he led Yuu up. It came to no surprise to Yuu that Kouyou lived on the top floor, and when the lift doors opened to Kouyou’s penthouse, the blond CEO immediately carried Yuu up into his arms bridal-style, shocking the raven once they left the lift.

Kouyou entered his apartment in a fury, scowling to Yuu as he headed straight for the bedroom, not even giving Yuu an opportunity to explore his house first. Yuu could tell the blond didn’t have patience to wait anymore, not after humoring Yuu’s playful flirting for a week, and especially _not_ after tonight’s dinner, where Yuu might _just_ have gone overboard.

And so, as the raven was thrown easily against the king-sized bed that Kouyou owned, there was nothing but the look of anger on Kouyou’s face, an emotion Yuu still wasn’t used to seeing from the blond.

“Daddy…” Yuu purred, whining cutely, trying to appeal to Kouyou’s soft spot for Yuu’s adorable side. He propped himself up against the white fluffy pillows, tilting his head endearingly to the side, but it looked as if the blond was having none of that tonight. Who knew playfulness was the key to turning Kouyou on? 

“Do you think it’s funny to tease Daddy in public, babydoll?” Kouyou hissed, kneeling onto the bed, edging himself closer to the raven.

Yuu bit his lip in guilt as Kouyou reached out a hand to cup roughly at Yuu’s jaw, forcing the raven-haired to look up to him. The room was full of Kouyou’s musky cologne, and inhaling it all at one go made Yuu dizzy. It smelled too much like Kouyou… It smelled too much like _sex_. Yuu wanted to make the blond even angrier, even madder at his little babydoll.

Yuu wanted to drive Kouyou _crazy_. 

“I don’t think I was wrong, Daddy…” Yuu mewled, blinking wide-eyed up to the blond.

Kouyou’s eyes narrowed at his response, and very soon he was getting up, removing himself from bed. Yuu frowned at the sight of the blond leaving.

“Where are you going?” 

“Stay put and don’t move,” Kouyou ordered. He left the room briskly, and Yuu could hear him entering another room and sifting through drawers. Was he looking for lube and condoms? Yuu smiled cheekily at the thought.

Kouyou came back in a few minutes, a black spiky collar in hand. Yuu’s eyes widened quickly, his heart skipping beats in his chest. Kouyou had proved to be as kinky as he’d thought; and it wasn’t like Yuu unwelcomed it, either, but Yuu had never been put in a collar before by any of his sugar daddies… though he knew if they did, he wouldn’t particularly object to it either.

Yuu was all for experimenting in the bedroom, especially when it came to hot daddies such as _him_.

“I’m going to put a collar on you,” Kouyou voiced out, surprisingly gentler this time round, as he crawled back into the bed to Yuu’s side. “That’s alright, right? Tell me if it isn’t.”

Yuu could barely find his voice to speak. “It is.”

“Good,” Kouyou said in a low whisper, then leaned over Yuu and clasped the collar around the raven’s neck, fastening it quickly. “Tell me if it’s too tight.”

Yuu felt slight discomfort due to it being his first time adorning such a thing, but it wasn’t constricting his breathing or anything. “It’s not,” Yuu said, realizing he was agreeing to totally submitting to the blond with the collar on. The thought chilled him to the bones, and Yuu felt a certain kind of anticipation flare up from within him. Yuu reached his hand, feeling up the collar around him, fingers brushing past the silver spikes on the black collar. There was a long silver metal chain connected to the front of his collar, and Yuu watched as Kouyou grabbed hold of it, immediately pulling Yuu’s head up to gaze to him.

“Kiss me,” Kouyou murmured, and Yuu was wrapping his arms around his neck in a second, reaching his head up to kiss Kouyou on the lips.

There were none of the gentle, coaxing kisses they gave each other on earlier dates. Their tongues were wild and hurried, and saliva dripped freely from their mouths as they exchanged fluids, their kissing sloppy and impatient. Kouyou ran his fingers through Yuu’s shoulder-length hair and pulled at it, pushing Yuu right back down into bed. They kissed non-stop, Kouyou’s body hovering over his, knees pinning Yuu’s ones down, and Yuu hadn’t felt more aroused.

“I need to punish you,” Kouyou finally grunted, pulling away after what seemed like forever, wiping roughly at his mouth. The older man tugged at his shirt, pulling it swiftly over himself, and Yuu could see the perfect abs on his body once more; muscles that looked absolutely _delicious_ and ripped and toned. The raven looked on with wanting eyes as Kouyou unzipped his jeans and lowered his briefs, pulling his hardening cock out.

So, Kouyou was indeed as eager as he’d thought; Yuu must have teased him a little _too_ much back at the restaurant. There were no time for subtleties or customaries; the blond was looking to him with a vulgar gaze, eyes daring Yuu to disobey him. 

“Suck,” Kouyou commanded, Yuu happily obeyed.

Kouyou pulled at the metal chain on his collar, getting Yuu onto his knees, and the raven dutifully looked to the flushing erection before him, that had already grown to a considerably thick size. Yuu knew it was _his_ fault for having done this to Kouyou, and so he readily accepted it was _his_ responsibility to solve the problem for him.

Yuu grasped Kouyou’s cock and shamelessly took the tip of it into his mouth, and the blond was groaning at the immediate relief, finally attaining the pleasure he’d wanted after all these while. It was obvious the older man took great care to keep himself well groomed, Yuu thought, as he eyed his neatly trimmed pubes. He was clean, dominant, and caring – what more could the raven want from the man?

Yuu sucked on the blond’s cock lightly, eyes falling to a close, feeling his mouth having to widen by the second to accommodate Kouyou’s ever hardening length.

Kouyou grabbed at Yuu’s hair and pushed his head down further, pushing past more of his cock into the moist, warm heat of Yuu’s mouth. Yuu moaned at his grasp, unhesitatingly accepting the intrusion, hollowing his cheeks as far as possible. Once Kouyou was almost completely engulfed past his lips, the blond hissed plenty sounds of approval.

“I’ve been thinking of fucking you right in your pretty little mouth ever since I saw your face, _Aoi_. You think you can be so playful with me and get away with all of it? Not a chance…” Kouyou groaned, pulling his cock slowly out. He pulled it out halfway before thrusting it right back in, fingers tangling roughly at Yuu’s hair. Yuu whimpered just as the head hit the back of throat, tears clouding his eyes, but he took Kouyou’s cock right up to the hilt without complaint, knowing Kouyou wanted for him to do just that.

“You wanted this, didn’t you? You wanted this from the very start,” Kouyou growled, and as Yuu produced a muffled sound around his cock, the blond slipped out halfway once more, then pushed it back in. “ _Oh,_ fuck yes. Your mouth feels so tight around my cock, Aoi. Suck it harder.”

Yuu sucked on it as hard as he could, slurping and using his tongue to lap up any pre-cum that escaped the slit. God, Yuu was such a whore, but he was growing so horny from being dominated by the blond that his own erection felt tight in his jeans. Yuu bobbed his head back and forth, slipping Kouyou’s cock in and out of his mouth, sucking harshly until Kouyou was breathing out Yuu’s name over and over again, reaching a hand over to deliver a slap onto Yuu’s ass cheeks.

“What a lovely little flower…” Kouyou chuckled, humming in encouragement as he looked down at Yuu, watching as the raven took his cock in his mouth repeatedly until saliva and pre-cum was dripping down the corners of his lips. 

Yuu’s face was in a mess, his eyes half-lidded, his mouth gorged full with Kouyou’s thick cock, his lips decorated with white pre-cum. He was making obscene sucking and slurping noises, as well as soft whimpers that would slip out every now and then, and Kouyou wanted to see those escalate; he wanted to tease Yuu as much as he had teased him. 

“Pull down your jeans,” The blond demanded, and Yuu was rushing to undress himself as fast as possible, desperate for his own relief. His jeans were so tight it was almost hard to take them off, but Yuu managed to get them off, all the while with Kouyou’s cock still deep in his mouth.

Kouyou’s eyes fell immediately to the underwear Yuu was wearing – lacey black panties that was hardly enough to cover Yuu’s curvy ass, nor hold his erection; plus the panties seemed pretty stained and damp at the front, already, with Yuu’s cock oozing with pre-cum, even without any stimulation so far. Kouyou cursed at the lewd sight, knowing Yuu had specially dressed himself to be _fucked_ _so, so bad_.

“I want you to finger fuck yourself as you suck my cock,” Kouyou snarled.

Yuu’s breath hitched at the order. He slid Kouyou’s cock out of his mouth with a wet popping sound, then hurriedly sucked onto his fingers, coating them with as much saliva as he possibly could. Enveloping the blond’s cock into his mouth once more, Yuu trailed his fingers tentatively to the back of his ass, tugging at hems of his panties.

Pulling them down slightly, enough to expose his hole, Yuu slid one finger between the cleft of his ass until he found his entrance. He then slipped his finger in, wriggling his way past a ring of muscle, before moaning loudly around Kouyou’s cock. 

“Does it feel good, Aoi?” Kouyou asked. _God_ , Yuu was so fucking horny right now, _anything_ inside of him would feel good.

Yuu nodded his head, thrusting the finger deeper inside of him. He was moaning again, and then Kouyou was reaching over to slap his ass once more, asking Yuu to get a move on to sucking his dick.

Yuu then proceeded to multi-task as skillfully as he could; he slurped hungrily at Kouyou’s cock, whilst working his finger faster and faster inside of him, quickly inserting another one once he felt his body was getting used to being stretched.

“ _Fuck_ , yes…” Kouyou groaned as Yuu worked his cock, allowing his head to fall back as he gasped each time Yuu’s tongue ran over his slit. The blond made sure the raven was dutifully fingering himself too, and he glanced down to Yuu occasionally to catch his lewd expressions of pleasure, he watched as Yuu’s ass shuddered helplessly while it got scissored over and over again by Yuu’s two fingers. Yuu was being fucked in both holes in his body, and his eyes with their long lashes were fluttering up and down in a hazy lust, his cock throbbing excitedly in anticipation.

Kouyou tugged at Yuu’s hair backwards until Yuu fell back against the pillows once more, and the raven looked up to him with confusion, wondering if Kouyou was _finally_ going to fuck him now.

“I want you to finger yourself in front of me,” Kouyou informed, gazing hungrily to the sight before him. “No touching your cock. Understand?”

Yuu nodded, messily stained lips parting to respond to Kouyou. “Yes, _sir…”_

The raven lay himself comfortably down on the sheets, spreading his legs apart, his hand moving down to locate his hole once more. He thrust two fingers back inside of him, not even bothering to hide his loud moan as his mouth parted to vocalize it. Yuu didn’t usually masturbate in his spare time, considering he was having enough sex with his sugar daddies as he already was, but there was something so _dirty_ about masturbating in front of Kouyou, and making sure Kouyou watched him as he did so.

Yuu slid his fingers in and out inside of him, curving his fingers upwards after thrusting them inside, and after a few thrusts he hit a deep spot that immediately sent intense waves of pleasure coursing through him. Yuu cried out Kouyou’s name, moans staggering out helplessly, and through his half-lidded eyes, he saw Kouyou furiously jerking at his cock in front of him, too aroused by the sexy sight.

Yuu would have blushed if he could, but his face was as red as it was, and he had pressing matters on hand to resolve. His own cock was swollen in between his thighs, and each time Yuu brushed against that same spot inside of him, his cock twitched, begging to be touched. Though, Yuu didn’t think he would need much to cum this time. Just the knowledge that he was touching himself to Kouyou, _right_ in front of Kouyou, made him horny enough already.

“ _Oh_ , _oh, oh, oh, yes!_ Yes, please, oh, _Daddy_ , _Daddy, Daddy_!” Yuu screamed, rocking back against his fingers desperately, a steady pressure building up inside of his stomach. He wanted Kouyou to fuck him so goddamn much, _fuck_.

“Aoi… Fuck, my little babydoll, look at how hard you’ve gotten me…” Kouyou breathed, hand sliding urgently up and down his own cock, eyes never peeling away from Yuu’s form. 

The raven was getting so close, _oh_ , so close, and he loved these moments the best. “Mmmm, _mmm_ , daddy likes watching me pleasure myself, daddy’s so naughty…” He fucked himself on his fingers harder as he spoke, moaning out louder and even louder each time he hit his prostate.

He just needed a few more thrusts, then he would cum, _oh_ , he would cum gloriously in front of Kouyou… 

“No cumming. Let me see that tight ass of yours in your lacey panties,” Kouyou quickly growled, instantaneously knowing what Yuu wanted to do, and he immediately slapped Yuu’s hands away from himself. 

Yuu sobbed, still wanting to cum, but Kouyou was pulling at the metal chain on his collar once more, flipping him over and forcing him to put his ass up, high in the air. 

Yuu’s own fluids were trickling down the raven’s inner thighs, and as Kouyou grabbed hold of the two ass cheeks in his palms, he got a better look at Yuu’s stretched opening, flushed and red and ready for Kouyou. Yuu’s cock hung heavy and pitifully between his legs, begging for some sort of release as soon as possible. 

Kouyou leaned over and surprised Yuu by dipping his tongue into Yuu’s hole, swirling his tongue inside of the raven for a little bit. _Fuck_! Yuu hadn’t had anyone ate him out for ages, and the feeling of Kouyou’s moist, wet tongue in him made Yuu’s go weak instantly. His knees were about to collapse and he was getting so fucking _wet_. 

By this point in time Yuu was crying wordlessly, incoherent whimpers leaving his throat, restless tears running down his cheeks.

“Please _daddy_ , please, I just want to cum, I’ve learnt my lesson, _please,_ I’m so sorry Daddy! I need to cum!” 

Kouyou’s eyes darkened, completely lust-filled by now. 

“How do you want to cum, my babydoll?”

Yuu choked back on his tears. “With Daddy’s cock in my ass. That’s all I want… to be fucked good by Daddy… then I will properly learn my lesson.”

Kouyou was so fucking _aroused,_ fuck.

“Don’t you ever tease Daddy again,” Kouyou warned – and then he was getting up, hands sifting through nearby drawers to pull out a condom, putting it on and lubing it in record speed. He was back on bed soon after, positioning his cock right before Yuu’s hole.

“I’m going in,” the blond murmured, his voice thick with desire.

As his tip breached into Yuu, the raven’s ass was shaking, trying to swallow as much of Kouyou as he could. Kouyou groaned as he entered the raven, feeling Yuu’s tight muscles wrap around his cock insistently.

“Fill me to the brim, _daddy_ ,” Yuu moaned, shoving his hips back against Kouyou’s, forcing more of Kouyou’s cock inside of him. “Ram it as deep inside of me as you can, I want all of Daddy inside of me…”

Kouyou’s cock throbbed inside of him. Fuck. “If that’s what you want, sweetheart… I’ll give it to you.” The blond slammed his cock into Yuu with such bruising force, the raven was gasping and moaning Kouyou’s name, enjoying being filled too much. 

There was nothing else that followed but the wet sounds of Kouyou’s cock pulling out and pushing back into his ass, skin smacking and rubbing lightly, bed creaking along with Yuu’s shameless pleas and insistent cries for more. They met each other’s thrusts one by one, with Kouyou gripping his hips, thrusting as fast and hard as he can, fulfilling his end of the bargain. Yuu reached a hand down circle around his cock, pleasuring himself to Kouyou’s timely thrusts.

“Fuck,” Kouyou moaned, easing his eyes close as he tossed his head back, enjoying Yuu’s tightness too much. He reached over to grab hold of the metal chain connected to his collar once more, pulling harshly at it as he rode Yuu faster and faster, re-angling his thrusts until he hit Yuu’s prostate. _Then_ Yuu was shaking underneath his grasp, reduced to snivels and sobs. Kouyou couldn’t hold back his loud groans. “Fuck, _yes_ , baby, _mmm_ , what a fucking good babydoll, you make your daddy so happy…”

Yuu cried out noisily in broken mewls until his voice croaked, his ass milking Kouyou as much as he could.

“ _Nnn…_! You’re so mean to me…! _Aah…_! K-Kouyou Daddy! _Please_ …! _Oh_! Fuck fuck fuck, d-daddy feels so good inside of… _fuck…_ me!”

“I told you if you called me _daddy_ in real life, you wouldn’t like what was coming,” Kouyou whispered, his god-awful smirk back upon his lips. Yuu buried his face into the sheets and tried to muffle his screaming as Kouyou thrust right back once more into his sensitive spot. “Go on, call me daddy. I’ll make you cum _so_ hard.” 

Yuu, with what strength he could muster, found himself defying the blond one last time, jerking his own cock off along to his lewd noises.

“D- _nnn! D…Daaadd…nnngh…_ Daddy!”

Kouyu gave another slap to his ass cheeks, watching them bounce as he continued fucking hard into them.

The next thrust left the both of them losing control, leaving Kouyou groaning as he emptied himself into Yuu, shivers washing over him as his cock twitched and pulsated, convulsing into his release. Pure pleasure shot through Yuu’s cock as he came, throwing his head back as he let out a stream of lengthy high-pitched moans, his ass clenching tight around Kouyou’s cock.

The both of them didn’t think they’d _ever_ came so hard. Yuu couldn’t even feel his feet. He could feel Kouyou pulling out of him, and Yuu whined at the loss contact, hearing the sounds of Kouyou sliding the used condom off him and tossing it into a bin nearby. The blond then rolled the raven over on the bed until Yuu’s panting face was facing him, before leaning down to kiss the side of Yuu’s mouth softly, hushed whispers leaving Kouyou’s lips as he praised the raven.

“You did so good, babydoll, that felt _so_ amazing…” Kouyou trailed kisses down Yuu’s jaw, to his neck, biting down on his collarbones.

Yuu briefly remembered he couldn’t have any of his sugar daddies leave behind any sort of love marks, considering he _still_ had to go on other dates as well, but Yuu couldn’t find the strength to stop Kouyou. There was a small part of him that wanted to remember this night, as well, though Yuu hid these feelings specifically away and refused to admit it. The raven allowed Kouyou to mark him easily, with the blond’s arms possessively wrapping around Yuu’s exhausted body as he did so.

“So beautiful, so pretty, so unreal,” Kouyou murmured against Yuu’s skin, fingers caressing up and down his body. After finally catching his breath, Yuu’s eyes gazed over to Kouyou – who was currently worshipping his body with so much love in his eyes Yuu wondered if he was mistaking it. 

“I’m yours,” Yuu heard himself saying, his heart warmly beating in his chest.

He fell asleep under Kouyou’s kisses and touches, hand clutching Kouyou’s one in his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> smutty smut smut
> 
> they finally do the do ;)
> 
> kouyou can be bad too ;) but is there love involved hmmmm
> 
> comments are appreciated as usual! thank you for whoever is keeping track with this story regularly <3


	7. Chapter 7

_Ohh_ fuck. Yuu woke up feeling so sore he couldn’t even move.

That, or the fact that Kouyou had his arms wrapped so tightly around Yuu, the raven couldn’t move an inch. The blond was currently spooning him from behind, his crotch pressed directly against the raven’s ass, his arms holding Yuu around his waist. 

Yuu found himself stuck in a very compromising position. 

Why the fuck was he so sore again? Yuu’s eyes strained to open, trying to move his head within what limited space he could shift in. _Oh,_ right. Memories of yesterday’s hardcore sex flooded back into his mind and he felt his cheeks turning pink instantly. Had he ever fucked _that_ hard before? Jesus Christ. Kouyou was _amazing_. If having sex with Kouyou just once was enough to reduce him into a mess, Yuu couldn’t wait for the _next_ time…

Yuu then gazed curiously around his surroundings, trying to take in Kouyou’s bedroom, considering he hadn’t had the time to get a proper look last night. His room looked exactly like what Yuu had expected. Opulent, grandiose, with a classy taste. Sure, Kouyou didn’t own a _castle_ , but the bedroom certainly did not disappoint. 

The bedroom was decorated like a royal suite in a five-star hotel, with luxurious white curtains covering body-length sliding window doors, where a balcony lay outside. The floor was covered in white wooden tiles, and underneath the bed lay a carpet made out of sheep’s wool. Black crystal chandeliers hung up high in the middle of the bedroom, complementing the white-washed walls and the huge intricately patterned oval mirror etched up on the wall directly facing the bed. 

How had Yuu not noticed that before? Then again, they had been too caught up in sex last night to notice _anything_. The both of them had been at it like rabid animals that were in heat, so much so that Yuu wondered if they’d both lost their minds momentarily last night.

Or maybe their sexual chemistry had been just _too_ good. Yuu had never fucked like that with anyone before.

Yuu groaned as he attempted shifting his legs to get into a more comfortable position. His body, _especially_ his ass, hurt like hell, and he wasn’t even sure if he could attend classes tomorrow. He would be paying for their hardcore sex for a whole _week_ at this rate. Still, remembering how good it felt with Kouyou’s rough hands on his hips as he fucked hard into him made Yuu giggle softly to himself. It was all worth it to finally experience how it would be like to have sex with the blond sugar daddy. Yuu would definitely be enjoying much more of this aspect of their relationship in time to come…

Yuu’s eyes lingered on the mirror before the bed. Maybe Kouyou was even into some mirror kinks he hadn’t told Yuu about…

Kouyou’s bedroom was generally decorated in white or black hues, and Yuu had to roll his eyes at the fact. Were rich people all so boring when it came to choosing colors? Though, Yuu thought his color preference reflected his personality rather accurately. Kouyou was either a total sweetheart or the kinkiest man he’d ever met, wasn’t he? Yuu laughed at the thought. A quick turn to the side of the bed, where a lamp lay atop a small drawer, reminded Yuu of yesterday’s endeavors once more. The black spiky collar he had worn yesterday was placed beside the lamp, and looking at it now, Yuu remembered how he’d acted like a total whore while donning the collar.

Maybe collars were his thing, Yuu thought, giggling silently to himself. Yuu had always liked being submissive, but the thought of being controlled with a collar made Yuu feel an unfamiliar kind of excitement boil up in him. Kouyou just had this effect on him – make him fall for dangerous things, and suck it all up like the slut he was…

He suddenly heard a rustle behind him, and then felt Kouyou’s head dip down his shoulder, a low groan leaving his lips.

“Are you awake yet, babydoll?” Kouyou whispered sleepily, pressing a kiss to the side of Yuu’s collarbones.

The raven reached a hand up, clutching at the blond’s head. “Mmm. You can go back to sleep though, if you want.”

Kouyou laughed, still rather drowsy, and for some reason he seemed so fragile when he was tired that Yuu found it cute. 

“Sorry for last night,” Kouyou murmured, his hand reaching for Yuu’s one, tracing circles comfortingly over and over into the raven’s palm. “I think I went overboard. I don’t know what came over me during dinner. I wasn’t really mad at you. I think I just–” The blond grinned, a playful smirk on his face. “I think I just wanted an excuse to treat you roughly. Sorry.”

Yuu hid his smile at his remark, and huffed, pretending to look offended. “Well, I guess that’s it then. I can’t stand men like that. I guess this is goodbye.” 

Kouyou’s fingers froze against Yuu’s palm, and for a moment the blond held his breath, anxious he had hurt the raven. “Wha–? Did you not like it? I thought we– I thought we had a pretty good time–” Kouyou’s lips fell into a frown, shocked. “Aoi, you didn’t like it? You could have told me halfway while I was f–”

“I was kidding,” Yuu giggled, winking flirtatiously to the blond. The blond grunted in response, and in a second Kouyou rolled him over and was seating himself atop Yuu’s thighs, pinning the raven’s wrists down quickly against the pillows.

“You think it’s funny to play jokes with me,” Kouyou said, eyeing him suspiciously, his face distrusting of Yuu. The raven innocently looked back up to him, attempting to wriggle his hands free from Kouyou’s grasp. Kouyou didn’t allow him to move an _inch_. “Do you like teasing me so much, Aoi?” 

Yuu gave a casual shrug. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m so cute.”

Kouyou’s eyes narrowed to him.

“You’re lucky you’re so cute,” the blond said, admitting defeat and sighing seconds later. He loosened his grip around Yuu’s wrists, leaning his head over to capture Yuu’s lips into several kisses instead. They kissed with mild tongue, and as Yuu circled his arms around the blond’s neck, Kouyou’s fingers fell against Yuu’s hair, playing briefly with his raven strands.

“ _Nnngh_ ,” Yuu moaned, kissing Kouyou harder. Once they pulled apart for breath and gazed back at each other, Yuu saw Kouyou looking to him with a kind of fondness in his eyes, barely masking how enamored he was with the raven.

“Are you going to spend all day staring at me or what?” Yuu teased. 

Kouyou smiled and shook his head, shaking off the short daze he’d slipped into. 

“You’re so beautiful,” the blond whispered, caressing at the raven’s hair strands gently.

They kissed a while more, until their tongues eventually grew tired and they grew hungry for breakfast. 

~

To Yuu’s surprise, once he was done and out of showering in the guest bathroom – which was two times the size of his own bedroom, the raven noted in the back of his head – Kouyou was already in the kitchen preparing breakfast for the both of them. Kouyou was rich, good-looking _and_ had the ability to cook. Jesus christ. How was this eligible bachelor not snapped up by anyone yet?

Yuu inhaled the inviting scent wafting all the way from the kitchen, stomach growling as he did so. Kouyou’s cooking smelled heavenly, just like –

…Oh, _snap_. Yuu had forgotten all about notifying Yutaka his whereabouts. _Fuck_. He must have worried Yutaka to death. Yuu _always_ promised to text Yutaka whenever he was staying over a sugar daddy’s house, just to show that he was still safe and sound (and most importantly, alive), but this time it seemed like during the thrill of it all Yuu had forgotten to notify Yutaka. Yutaka was _so_ going to kill him.

“I’m so fucked,” Yuu cursed, running his way hurriedly back to the bedroom to look for his phone. Kouyou turned from his cooking to glance at him, a quizzical look on his face, but he went back to preparing breakfast for them anyway.

Yuu found his jeans tossed on the floor of Kouyou’s bedroom, his mobile phone still in his pocket. Once he’d retrieved it safely out, he wasn’t surprised to find it exploded with texts and calls from his one and only roommate. Yuu cursed again as he scrolled through the twenty texts he’d gotten from Yutaka, feeling bad he’d caused the brunet to worry over him again.

 **_Yutaka:_ ** _Why haven’t you texted me yet?_

 **_Yutaka:_ ** _Hello? Are you there?_

 **_Yutaka:_ ** _Are you serious? It’s going to be midnight._

 **_Yutaka:_ ** _SHIROYAMA YUU! ARE YOU DEAD YET?!_

 **_Yutaka:_ ** _I swear to God, if you’re not texting me because you’re too busy being fucked by your sugar daddy, I will be soooo pissed at you._

**_Yutaka:_ ** _DO I NEED TO CALL THE POLICE?!?!!?!?!?_

**_Yutaka:_ ** _Seriously, no kidding, I’m going to call the police._

**_Yutaka:_ ** _OK, clearly you are dead, dismembered, and floating on water right now, or you’re just being an idiot and worrying me and making me FRANTIC AS HELL. IT’S 2 FUCKING AM._

 **_Yutaka:_ ** _R.I.P SHIROYAMA YUU_

 **_Yutaka:_ ** _No, seriously, R.I.P. Once you get a hold of me, I’m yelling at you._

The last message was sent at 4 am. Yuu dialed Yutaka’s number as fast as he could, praying the brunet wouldn’t be _too_ mad at him. It was now eight in the morning and Yutaka should be awake by now, considering he was an early riser; despite often studying late into the night. _Oh, god. Please don’t let him kill me_ , Yuu prayed.

The call picked up immediately with Yutaka’s voice yelling at him over the speaker. Yuu briefly wondered if the brunet had been waiting for a call from him the whole night – Yutaka had a habit of sleeping with his phone on right beside him whenever Yuu stayed over someplace else.

“I CAN’T FUCKING BELIEVE YOU!”

“Yutaka! I’m sorrrryyyyyy!” Yuu apologized profusely, knowing he did Yutaka wrong this time. “I totally forgot about it. Really! I _honestly_ forgot about it! I know I worried you sick, but I… I’m soooo sorrryyyy!” 

Yutaka continued yelling. “Do you think it’s fun waiting for a text from your friend who goes out on dates with _questionable_ men who pay him for sex and you have to just fucking sit here and wait and wonder if your friend has _fucking_ died yet?! I can’t believe you! If something happened to you, you know I wouldn’t _ever_ forgive myself!”

Yuu felt guilt wash over him quickly. Yutaka had always been a good friend to him, and despite Yuu being the more affectionate one, he knew Yutaka cared a lot about him in his own right, too. He hated the thought of dragging Yutaka into his sugar dating life, and causing him to worry just because of Yuu’s work.

“I’m really sorry,” Yuu whispered, easing his eyes shut. “Yutaka, I feel so horrible about this. I know you worried a ton over me. I’ll make it up to you, I promise. I’ll remember next time, alright? I’m so, _so_ sorry.” 

Yutaka calmed down a bit after hearing Yuu’s subdued tone. The brunet released a soft sigh. “You know I just care a lot about you.”

Yuu looked to the ground. “I know… I’m such a bad friend, Yutaka. I promise I’ll remember next time.” 

Yutaka sighed again. “Okay, maybe I was too harsh on you. Just… Just remember to let me know you’re still alive next time, alright? You know I’m iffy about these things.” 

“Okay,” Yuu hastily agreed, feeling better now that Yutaka didn’t seem as angered. “It’s just… I usually wouldn’t forget, but… But this time it’s… slightly different. I mean, Kouyou’s… Kouyou’s really, _really_ , different. In a good way. In every aspect.”

Yutaka’s breath staggered at his words. “You’ve been talking about him day in and day out these days. You sound like you’re…” The brunet trailed off, sounding hesitant. “So, did you… Were you both… busy last night?”

Yuu had to stifle a giggle at his question. “Um… Kinda. He was… Um. He was really good. Uh, thinking about it is making me blush. It was fantastic. I’ve never met a man who could make me cum like that–”

“Oh my _god_ , too much information,” Yutaka groaned, sounding instantly annoyed. “Seriously, Yuu, I do _not_ need to know things like that.”

“Oops,” Yuu giggled. “Sorry.”

“Okay, well, seeing as how you’re safe, I guess I can let you off the hook now,” Yutaka muttered, still sounding displeased. “However! Text me if anything else happens, okay? I won’t feel safe until you’re back home.” 

Yuu smiled warmly at his words. “Okay! I promise.”

Yutaka sighed. “I’ll hold you to that.”

They ended the phone call swiftly, but as Yuu turned to head back to the kitchen, he saw Kouyou standing by the bedroom door with an amused smile on his face, his arms folded, dressed simply in a casual shirt and boxer shorts. 

“Sooo…” Kouyou began, eyeing Yuu’s lean body deliciously. Yuu was wearing a similar get-up, in a shirt and short shorts, but they hugged his slim frame in a way that made him _so_ irresistible to the blond. “I heard you’ve never met a man who could make you cum like that before. I wonder who you were talking about.”

Yuu felt his face grow hot. “That… _That_ , was, uh, not–”

“I know what we’re doing after breakfast now,” Kouyou said smugly, turning around and leading the way back to the kitchen

The raven didn’t dare ask _what_ , but he knew his ass was going to be hurting ten times more after this.

~

So. Not only could Kouyou cook, he was a _good_ cook too. He had cooked poached eggs with toasted bread for breakfast, and Yuu couldn’t remember the last time he wasn’t having his usual sunny side-ups with hotdogs that he regularly cooked with Yutaka. The raven was goddamn _moaning_ as he savored every last bit of Kouyou’s breakfast, wondering how on earth the blond could cook this good.

Kouyou’s kitchen was very minimalistic in its design, covered in white from head to toe, and sleekly floored with dark brown wood. There was even a mini bar to the side, and Yuu wondered how often the blond even utilized it in his home.

Kouyou sat opposite him at the glass dining table right outside the kitchen, laughing at how eager Yuu seemed to be eating his food.

 “The sex is great. The food is great. The _house_ is great. I’m not exactly sure what’s _not_ great about you,” Yuu said, his voice muffled as he gobbled the food hungrily down his throat. “You know, I still can’t believe I’m getting paid for this. How am I getting paid for this?” 

The blond chuckled further. “You know, Aoi, have you ever considered the fact that maybe we’re just very well-suited for each other, and not the fact that we’re too good for each other? Because in my eyes, you’re way out of my league. And no protesting about that.”

Yuu’s jaw fell agape. “Are you fucking kidding me? Jesus _christ_. My sugar daddy’s insane.”

Kouyou laughed shortly. “You think way too highly of me, don’t you?” 

Yuu snorted. “I would say no, but I would be lying. You’re like… a goddamn character right out of a romance novel. It’s insane. I have no idea how I got so lucky.”

Kouyou looked to him, amused. “Aoi… _I’m_ the one that got lucky.” 

The raven cut another portion of his food, greedily stuffing it into his mouth. “You _mmff_ fu _mm_ ing craz _mfggg_.”

The blond chuckled. “Don’t eat with your mouth full, sweetheart. You’ll choke.” 

Yuu shot him a look, trying to chew on his food as fast he possibly could.

“It’s true, though…” Kouyou mumbled. He paused for a moment, wondering if he should continue. With much hesitance, he found the will to speak.

“The last time someone broke up with me, she said I was too insensitive and demanding for her. It’s… It’s not something anyone can get used to,” the blond uttered quietly, his smile fading bit by bit. 

Yuu stopped chewing for a moment, noticing the sudden tension in the atmosphere. _The last time someone broke up with him?_ Was he referring to his six-year relationship? The long-term one he had just gotten out of a year ago?

“But that’s impossible,” Yuu replied, swallowing down the food in his mouth quickly. There was a long list of words that could describe the blond, and insensitive wasn’t one of them. He was the _sweetest_ guy Yuu had met. Who in their right mind would call Kouyou insensitive?

“Kouyou, you’re… so thoughtful, so kind, so nurturing. You make me happy when I’m upset, and you get so worried when you think I might get mad. Kouyou – that person must be _blind_. You’re so crazy emotionally sensitive, I couldn’t ask for a better sugar daddy to be with.”

The blond still looked doubtful, though, and he cast his eyes away, drawing in a long breath.

“Well, I’m glad that you think I’m thoughtful, now. That I’m sensitive enough to your needs. Because I’ve been…” Kouyou swallowed down the rest of his words, looking reluctant to continue, his gaze conflicted. “…Nevermind. It doesn’t matter, anyway. Let’s talk about you.” He forced a smile onto his face, though it looked so painfully shallow Yuu _knew_ Kouyou wasn’t used to masking his emotions very well.

Something ached at Yuu’s heart to see Kouyou so _hurt_ , and part of the raven desperately wanted to find out why. He reached out a hand and placed it over Kouyou’s one, softly intertwining their fingers together.

“We talk about me a lot,” Yuu murmured, quietly glancing over to the blond.

Kouyou’s forcefully widened his smile. “I know. And it’s good, you know, I love hearing about you. It’s never a boring conversation topic when it’s about you.”

The raven frowned. The blond was trying so hard to get Yuu to push the subject away. Unfortunately for him, Yuu had to be the _most_ stubborn person on the planet – something the raven was used to being called by Yutaka when it came to deciding on matters for the both of them.

“I want to know more about you,” Yuu started, as gently as he possibly could. “I want to know more, Kouyou. This isn’t a superficial relationship, as you said, _right_? I want to know you as a person. I want to know you more than expensive gifts and mind-blowing sex. I want more than that. And I know you do, too.” 

He watched as Kouyou’s mask faltered at his words, his smile falling back into an upset frown just like how it was before. Yuu _knew_ his words would do the trick. He’d played the same cards with several sugar daddies before, and they’d immediately given in to him, liking how Yuu seemed to be so emotionally sensitive to their needs.

Yuu wanted to get Kouyou closer to him. He wanted to feel the blond’s heart beat in his very hands; he wanted to _know_ the contents of the very heart that was beating. He wanted Kouyou to open up, to lose himself further into Yuu. 

Because when they did, that usually meant Yuu had won the game.

 _(It was not because Yuu really wanted to know more about Kouyou, no. It wasn’t, Yuu strictly reminded to himself, whose heart seemed to weaken too easily whenever it came to the blond CEO. It was just because Yuu wanted the upper hand, and he was simply doing his job as the perfect boyfriend.)_  

“It’s nothing, it’s just…” Kouyou begun, slowly easing the words out past his lips. “I just, I’ve been… I haven’t been completely honest with how I am, I guess. And it’s nothing bad, but – I’ve been trying, _so_ hard, to see if I can get better at this, to see if – if maybe I can get rid of, this insensitivity, whatever, you know. It’s just–”

Kouyou paced his breathing for a second, struggling to remain calm.

Yuu’s heart fell at the sorry sight, wondering if Kouyou had said too much, far too much; more than he’d originally planned to reveal to the raven.

“I sucked,” Kouyou confessed, placing both elbows onto the table, clutching his head agonizingly with two hands. “I sucked… you know. I did something wrong, I– Got too caught up with work, neglected her, we fell apart. I was… insensitive. Didn’t bother noticing she wasn’t happy. Didn’t bother voicing out anything. Didn’t–” 

The blond’s eyes flickered over to Yuu’s woefully. 

“I knew she was upset, I didn’t ask her about it. Thought it would be okay. She didn’t – she didn’t like the things I did in the bedroom, too. Said I was too – too _demanding_. I didn’t know she didn’t – didn’t like it – she said I – I’m _too much_ , I’m not someone–”

At this point in time he was getting choked up and his throat was growing dry; and his heart was breaking and _Yuu’s_ heart was breaking, and no tears were running yet but Yuu could see the tears that would fall too soon. 

“ – I’m not someone _anyone_ can love.”

And in that moment Yuu understood. 

Yuu understood, _now_. The reason why Kouyou had been so sensitive from the start; the reason why Kouyou had been so kind, so patient, so endearing; the reason why Kouyou had been so afraid he’d upset Yuu with his words when he’d asked the raven politely to refrain from calling him _daddy_ in public; the reason why Kouyou had been careful with Yuu in the bedroom, afraid he would hurt him; the reason why, when Yuu joked with Kouyou that the raven hadn’t liked the sex, Kouyou had gotten so apologetic, worried he’d forced Yuu into doing things he hadn’t wanted to do –

Yuu understood _everything_.

Kouyou was just trying to be the person he never was. Kouyou had started this sugar dating game, to see if Kouyou was _enough_ as a person, as a man, to pamper someone else, to see if Kouyou was _fit_ to be with someone else in a normal relationship again. Kouyou hadn’t only wanted companionship – he wanted to practice, too. He wanted to practice being the perfect man; he wanted to be the loving partner he never was. He wanted to be the person his partner had left him for. He wanted to be – _loved_.

Kouyou was human, after all.

And everyone had their imperfections, and everyone had their insecurities. And right here, right now, Kouyou cuddling him after sex, Kouyou playing with Yuu’s hair and kissing him delicately and calling him _his flower_ , Kouyou cooking him the perfect breakfast – Kouyou was just… _trying_. Kouyou was trying. Kouyou was trying his very best to make Yuu like him, as a human being, and Yuu had been teasing him. Maybe even ridiculing his efforts. Not taking him seriously.

All these while Yuu had thought Kouyou was _using_ him. That they were both mutually _using_ each other. 

And, maybe, in a way, Kouyou was.

But Kouyou took this relationship seriously, and that was all that mattered to the raven.

“You are perfect to me,” Yuu whispered softly, squeezing Kouyou’s hand tightly in his. “Kouyou, she hadn’t liked you because of… _you_. You don’t have to change, you know, just for one person. You don’t have to change the way you are just to get people to like you.”

Kouyou’s hazy eyes blinked up to him, looking lost for a second. “I don’t – I don’t believe you,” the blond said, biting his tongue, though he held Yuu’s hand closely to him.

“You wouldn’t have even… liked me, if I had been half the man I used to be. I was… ignorant. Cold. Selfish. _Very_ selfish, in fact. I was… horrible. And maybe dealing with people with fake facades at work 24/7 has made me this cold, and maybe I built up a front to deal with it. But you’re – you’re _different_. You’re so happy, you _make_ me so happy, that when you get upset I just – I just _can’t_ take it. I never want you to get hurt.”

Yuu shivered at his words. He could feel that the blond _meant_ it, and the intensity of it all… made the raven happy. 

So much so that it confused him.

“Kouyou… If you’re saying all of these, truly, from the bottommost of your very heart, then they must be real. Your feelings. Your kindness. Your _tenderness_. You’ve always had it in you. Perhaps you hadn’t known how to express it, back then. But you’re kind, Kouyou. You’re kind, and you’re thoughtful, and you’re… _enough_. You’re enough for me. You’re more than enough. I just… I _need_ you to know that.” 

Kouyou’s eyes shimmered up to him. 

“You’re special,” the blond admitted, smiling weakly to the raven. The raven’s heart fluttered at the gesture. “You’re really, _really_ special. And I’m so jealous,” he broke into a soft laugh, shaking his head. “ _So_ jealous. So jealous of the man that will eventually marry you one day. He’ll be the luckiest man on earth. I just hope you find someone who deserves you that much.”

Yuu, honestly, didn’t know how to feel after that. He felt a combination of emotions hearing Kouyou’s words – disappointment _yet_ relief, happiness _yet_ anger. The worst thing was that he couldn’t pinpoint each emotion to a specific reason, and it punched him harshly in the gut at the realization.

He hadn’t been this emotionally involved with any of his sugar daddies before.

They hadn’t bothered to treat him as kindly, hadn’t bothered to think of him as a human being. And here Kouyou was, telling the raven he deserved everything in the world, when the perfect man was standing right before him.

“I’m guessing you don’t think you’re worthy of being such a person,” Yuu said to him, forcing a smile to the blond.

Kouyou’s gaze lowered. “No, no, I don’t. Not me, no.”

Yuu didn’t know why he wanted to cry suddenly. Was it because he thought he wasn’t good enough for the blond to try for him? Or was it because of something else? Was it because he _wanted_ the blond to try for him? 

…But why would Yuu _want_ Kouyou to try for him? Yuu was twenty-one. Yuu _wasn’t_ looking for love. Yuu never had. Yuu was just here for the money, for the easy ride, for the clearing of his debts. Yuu was here because he _had_ to. Yuu– Yuu couldn’t want more out of this, could he?

Yuu didn’t know. Yuu didn’t _want_ to know.

“One day maybe you will feel you’re worthy enough,” Yuu murmured quietly, looking away.

Kouyou curved his lips into a hopeful smile. “Maybe.” 

The rest of their breakfast passed on in peaceful silence, but their hands never let go of each other. And for some reason, knowing Kouyou was _so_ close to him, and yet so far away, made the raven feel at unease. 

Was the blond too emotionally scarred to ever get involved in another relationship? It wasn’t like Yuu should care, but he did. And that fact itself frightened the raven. 

He just wanted the blond to hold him again and kiss him softly against his face, taking all of his thoughts away so he could bask in the moment of this pretend-love.

And in that moment of fantasizing Yuu knew he had fucked up. He had fucked up big time, he thought, as he gazed over to Kouyou and traced imaginary lips over his eyes and cheeks. 

And he wasn’t prepared to face the consequences.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> things get a little emotional here
> 
> and confusing for yuu. go ahead and deny your feelings ha
> 
> this is how i imagine Kouyou's room to be like: [here](http://i60.tinypic.com/13ygz2r.jpg) but maybe a little more monchrome !!! 
> 
> comments are appreciated as usual <3


	8. Chapter 8

They ended up cuddling on the sofa in Kouyou’s living room an hour later, with the raven seated cutely upon Kouyou’s thighs, curled up warmly in Kouyou’s embrace. They flicked through television channels mindlessly, making random comments about whatever that was on. Yuu yawned in between, snuggling his head into Kouyou’s neck. The blond smiled at the raven’s antics, his arms squeezing Yuu tightly in his grasp.

“How are you so cute,” Kouyou whispered, dipping his nose down to catch a whiff of Yuu’s freshly washed hair. Yuu had brought the strawberry shampoo he’d always used – his other sugar daddies said they’d loved the smell – and he’d thought Kouyou would like it too. Indeed, his hopes didn’t disappoint, and Yuu giggled when the blond planted a kiss against Yuu’s hair, showing his appreciation for the raven.

“I don’t know,” Yuu cheekily responded, eyes gazing up to Kouyou’s. They stared at each other for awhile, eyes transfixed sweetly upon each other’s, until Kouyou started tugging at Yuu’s hair and nudging his head up a little. Then he drew Yuu’s lips into a soft kiss, eyes falling shut as he did so. Yuu indulged him, and the both of them kissed shortly, pulling away every few seconds or so, before kissing each other again, their kissing growing from quick and short to long and hurried. 

Not before long, they were back to their urgent, desperate kissing, reminiscent of yesterday’s kisses, and Yuu felt his body alight on fire once more, panting and wanting to feel more of Kouyou against him. He rolled himself up, straddling Kouyou’s thighs, his hips gyrating along to the pace of their kisses. Kouyou’s hands fell from his hair to move to his waist, hands fingering the hems of Yuu’s tight shirt, pushing them up his stomach. He was surprised to find a silver navel piercing there, something he hadn’t noticed yesterday. Then again – they’d both fucked too eagerly, anyway. There were plenty of things they’d missed out. 

Breaking away from their kiss, Kouyou found the breath to speak. “That’s hot.”

Yuu looked down through hazy eyes to meet Kouyou’s gaze. “What’s hot?” 

The blond gestured. “Your navel piercing,” Kouyou said, pressing his lips to Yuu’s navel. He kissed the side of his stomach, fingers caressing past the soft skin that lay there. “When did you get it?” 

Yuu smiled. “At 19. I was all sorts of recklessness at 19, but I still keep my navel piercing. I like it.”

Kouyou grinned. “I like it, too.” He fluttered gentle kisses up his stomach, pushing Yuu’s shirt higher and higher up his chest. The raven allowed the blond to pull the shirt off him finally, tossing the shirt aside on the sofa.

“Don’t understand how you’re so hot,” Kouyou murmured against his skin, eyes easing shut as he took a nipple of Yuu’s into his mouth. Yuu moaned at the contact, his hands reaching down to entangle into Kouyou’s hair. A swirl of the blond’s tongue against his nipple and Yuu’s thighs were immediately clenching, his breath staggering as he did so.

“N-No, Kouyou…” Yuu sighed in pleasure, fluttering his eyes close. He rolled his hips against Kouyou’s, fingers clenching and unclenching in Kouyou’s hair as the blond’s tongue licked and lapped against his nubs. It was getting his lower regions flustered, and Yuu found himself pressing harder down against Kouyou’s lap. Kouyou made a low groan at the back of his throat as Yuu rubbed himself against him, the blond’s cock stirring too easily to life at his dry humping. 

Yuu felt Kouyou’s pants tightening underneath him and gazed smugly to him, knowing _exactly_ the kind of effect he had on Kouyou. He continued grinding slowly against the blond, rubbing his ass right against Kouyou’s crotch, wanting to test how long it’d take for Kouyou to be pushed over the limit.

A moment later and Kouyou was hissing, releasing Yuu’s nipple from his mouth. He leaned up to bring Yuu into a short kiss, tongue hungrily savoring his. At the same time, his hands were slowly slipping down Yuu’s waist, falling just around his curvy hips, and tugging at the elastic band of the short shorts Yuu was wearing. He pulled it slightly down, his half-lidded eyes peeking at Yuu’s underwear. He wasn’t disappointed.

Yuu had put on lacey red panties this time, tied together by his sides with criss-cross ribbons. As usual, Yuu always appeared to be wearing a size smaller than he really should, for when Kouyou’s hand reached to cop a feel at the back of Yuu’s ass, he found the underwear too small to cover the raven’s ass cheeks fully, and was instead threatening to slip back in between Yuu’s ass like how a g-string would. God, the knowledge turned Kouyou on more than it should, and the blond was quickly pulling away from their kiss, eyes looking to Yuu lecherously.

“Turn around and let me see your ass,” Kouyou asked crudely, and Yuu happily complied.

“So _demanding_ ,” Yuu teased, but he turned around, anyway, peeling his shorts off him as he did so. He tossed them to the side, along with his shirt, and sat back against Kouyou’s lap, wriggling his ass cutely in the blond’s sight. Kouyou was drawing in a long breath, his eyes fixated on Yuu’s plump-looking ass cheeks.

He’d just fucked in between those cheeks the night before but Kouyou knew it wasn’t enough. _Hell_ , no matter how many times he would fuck the raven, it would never be enough. Last night had been complete _bliss_ for him and he knew the instant he lay his eyes upon Yuu’s form that he wouldn’t ever get enough of the raven. 

“Why do you always look so lewd, so ready to be fucked.” Kouyou muttered to the raven, hands eagerly grabbing hold of Yuu’s two ass cheeks. He cupped them both with his hands, feeling them fill against his palm nicely, just the right size for him to squeeze and smack. He gave a slap to Yuu’s right ass cheek, watching intently as it wobbled a little and grew red under his touch.

Yuu whimpered at the contact, grinding down against Kouyou’s crotch instinctively. That earned him another slap from the blond, who disapproved of his teasing, and Yuu immediately let out a surprised cry out. 

“Why does _daddy_ like to play with my ass so much,” Yuu whined, turning his head to give an adorable pout to the blond. Kouyou smirked at the sight, gripping Yuu’s tightly in his hands.

“ _Daddy_ likes asses plump and firm like yours,” Kouyou cooed, leaning his lips over to plant a kiss against Yuu’s reddening ass cheek. “Daddy will smack you as much as he deems fit, isn’t that right, _babydoll_?”

Yuu felt his heart pound with excitement at the sound of Kouyou being in control once more, and he nodded his head obediently, anxious to please. He wanted nothing more than for Kouyou to fuck him now and he didn’t want to have to wait long for that to happen.

“Daddy wants to play with this ass for a little while,” Kouyou murmured in a low voice, pushing Yuu’s hips up and getting the raven to kneel against his lap, bringing the raven’s ass closer to his face. With a finger, he tugged down the hems of Yuu’s red lacey panties and pulled his two cheeks apart, feeling his cock twitch at the sight of Yuu’s luscious-looking small pink hole. Yuu squirmed in his hold, begging for Kouyou to start pampering him already, and Kouyou gave another light smack to him.

“Stop being impatient,” Kouyou scolded, though there wasn’t any real malice in his voice. 

“But _Daddy_ …” Yuu pouted further.

Kouyou gave a low sigh, as if he had no choice but to give in, then moved forward to give a quick lick to Yuu’s bare asshole. The raven mewled instantly, liking the attention, egging the blond to go on. Kouyou gave another few quick licks, before slipping his tongue in, and that was when Yuu let out a long moan of happiness, thighs shaking underneath Kouyou’s hold.

“ _Mmm_ … _Feels good_ ,” Yuu vocalized, eyes falling shut as he shifted his ass closer to Kouyou’s face. Kouyou swirled his tongue inside of him, awaiting the raven’s reaction, and was pleased when Yuu let out another strangled moan. 

“Faster, _please_ ,” The raven begged. Kouyou pushed his tongue in deeper, then moved it out a short distance, before flicking it deep inside Yuu again, making the raven gasp with pleasure. Kouyou began this steady rhythm of fucking him with his mouth, sucking and licking and pushing his tongue hotly inside of the raven, delighting in hearing Yuu’s cries as he did so.

“ _Nnnghhh_ Daddy’s so mean to me! Oh, _oh, fuck_ …!” Yuu moaned, shifting his hips every other second to accommodate Kouyou’s tongue better in him. His ass throbbed in Kouyou’s hands as the blond held them apart, and Kouyou found himself satisfiedly squeezing them back in return. In turn, the walls of Yuu’s ass nervously tightened around Kouyou’s tongue, and _god_ , did it feel good as fuck for the raven.

Yuu humped Kouyou’s tongue as much as he could, loving the feeling of his saliva and wet, pulsating tongue delving deep inside of him. He wrapped a hand around his own cock, touching himself to the feeling of Kouyou’s tongue wedged deep in his hole. 

“Just fuck me harder, Daddy! Aoi wants to be treated badly!” Yuu pleaded, squirming his ass in Kouyou’s grasp. Kouyou growled at the disobedience, then decided to slip a finger into Yuu’s ass, breaching his hole at the same time his tongue was moving inside of Yuu once more. The raven felt his hole welcome the intrusion, stretching easily to accommodate the blond’s wet tongue and thick digit, his lips parting to let out pleased moans in response.

“Aah… Nnnghhh… D… _Daddy_ …!” Yuu panted loudly, feeling the blond fuck him more vigorously like this. Kouyou was lapping his tongue over the tight furl of his entrance, while his finger reached the places his tongue couldn’t reach, sliding in deeper to prod around for Yuu’s prostate. A few seconds later and Kouyou knew he had found it when his finger twisted up and he heard Yuu let out a satisfying scream in response. Kouyou gave another tentative lick and thrust of his finger again and Yuu made the same reaction, his milky thighs quivering in anticipation. 

Kouyou decided he would stop there, denying Yuu of any further pleasure. He pulled both finger and tongue out and pushed Yuu’s ass back down to his lap, turning the raven around to face him.

“You want to cum, don’t you?” Kouyou asked, smirking, watching as Yuu nodded hornily. “I want you to ride my cock and show me how much you want it.”

Yuu didn’t waste any time in doing so. He moved his hands forward to pull at Kouyou’s boxer shorts, pulling enough to slip his stiff cock out and see its hardness in full view. Yuu grew triumphant at the sight, knowing it was _him_ who was responsible for such a reaction.

“Get the lube and condom from underneath the coffee table,” Kouyou instructed, and Yuu was scrambling for the coffee table behind him, locating the box of condoms and bottle of lube easily from underneath. He grabbed for a packet of condom, yanking it open quickly with his teeth – a trick he had learnt that made him look _both_ sexy and efficient – and placed the condom around Kouyou’s length swiftly, before coating it with lube.

“Ride me,” Kouyou groaned, and very soon the raven was positioning his ass right above Kouyou’s cock, the tip of his member brushing right against Yuu’s tightly stretched entrance. Yuu sucked in a breath as he lowered himself against Kouyou, trembling as every inch of Kouyou’s cock breached him slowly until he was fully inside of the raven. The stretch felt incredible, and Yuu felt so stuffed full of cock he was in _heaven._

They both groan in unison at the sensation of being filled and filling the other at the same time, and Kouyou’s hands automatically move to the raven’s behind, cupping Yuu’s ass in his palms once more.

“Fuck…” The blond was moaning; his cock felt too _thick_ , too good inside of the raven.

Yuu found himself shuddering as he lifted himself up slightly, feeling the delicious drag of Kouyou’s cock as he did so. Yuu then felt himself tightening as he slid back down onto Kouyou’s cock, his face scrunching up immediately in ecstacy, getting used quickly to the feeling of being fucked. 

“You like that, _huh_ , splitting me open with your big cock, _nngghh,_ Daddy…” Yuu whispered out dirtily, eager to please.

He gave a few more experimental thrusts, lifting himself up and down on Kouyou’s cock as slowly as he could; but his ass was soon aching for more, and Kouyou’s hot cock was already starting to leak pre-cum inside of him. 

Yuu loved being fucked in this position so much, _fuck_. He loved the control he had in this position and he loved watching his partner come undone because of himso _goddamn_ much.

“S-So good! Aah! _Nnngh_! Nnn!” Yuu trembled, biting his lip as he lost himself to the thrusts. Yuu began fucking himself atop Kouyou’s cock at elevated speed, throwing his head back as he did so, mouths producing mewls and whimpers with each thrust, his ass hungrily sucking in Kouyou’s cock as much as it could. 

“ _Fuck,_ Aoi _…_ ”Kouyou cursed again as Yuu began picking up his pace, and he had his head leant back against the sofa as well, groaning every now and then at the feeling of his thick cock wedging past every of Yuu’s tight muscles, giving him the treatment he deserved.

Yuu panted shamelessly as he worked his ass up and down against Kouyou’s cock, wanting to pleasure the blond as much as he could. “D… _Daddy_!” the raven moaned out loudly again, never relenting as he fucked atop the blond. Kouyou dug his nails into his ass cheeks, hissing as Yuu clamped down _hard_ against him in the next second. 

“What a good slut for Daddy…” Kouyou whispered huskily, eyes gazing up to admire the sight before him. Yuu was fully naked, save for the pink panties he’d slid down to his mid thighs, and his raven hair was tossed over to the side of his neck, sticking to his face warmly as he started to sweat. Yuu looked _absolutely_ helpless straddling him, his mouth parted in obscene moans, his heavily lidded eyes staring lustfully down to the blond. His navel piercing made him look _so_ fucking hot and sexy against his fair and creamy skin, along with his curvy moving hips that Kouyou couldn’t look away from. 

God, Kouyou wanted to ravish him so much. He wanted to corrupt the raven with all his filthy desires; he wanted to make the raven surrender under his control.

“Can't believe you’re mine…” Kouyou murmured, strong hands pushing Yuu up with every thrust, forcing the raven to go at his furious pace. “ _Mmm,_ can’t fucking believe this ass belongs to me, _so tight… so juicy_ …”

Yuu moaned to Kouyou’s words, clenching his thighs and feeling his inner walls squeeze around Kouyou’s cock. It spurred Kouyou on, and the blond was quickly fucking up inside of Yuu as well, driving all breath and thought out of Yuu as he pushed his cock frenziedly up into him, sliding in so deep Yuu went dizzy at the pleasure.

“N-No, _Daddy_ , t… _aah_! Too fast! D-Daddy! _Please_!” Yuu embarrassedly cried out, feeling the blond easily manhandle his body in his grasp. Kouyou was spreading his thighs apart, holding them effortlessly in his hands, driving his hole over and over again onto Kouyou’s cock. Yuu couldn’t control the lewd sounds that kept leaving his lips, his body shivering at the intense pleasure that came with every fast thrust. Yuu was still so tight around Kouyou, and the both of them _felt_ it good.

“D…Daddy, if you go too fast, I-I will– _aah_ … _nnngh… D-Daddy…!_ ” Yuu sobbed, hand urgently reaching down to fist at his own cock. The combined pleasure of his erection being stroked and his asshole being nicely fucked made the raven almost lose himself over the edge. Kouyou was still lost in his own pleasure, eyes closed, mouth parted in groans. Yuu tried to accommodate him as much as possible, lifting himself up on weak knees and clenching his inner walls around Kouyou’s thick, hard cock.

“Babydoll…” Kouyou whispered, hissing as he began fucking Yuu in short, fast strokes, desperate to reach his release. They were both reaching their limits and it was easy to tell, from the never-ending sounds of their pleasured cries ringing in the air, and the loud slapping of Yuu’s ass against his lap. Yuu was making incoherent sounds by now, pleading for Kouyou to go _faster_ and _faster_ so he could cum under the blond’s touch.

“T…That’s the place, Daddy! Right there, right _there_ , yes _fuck_ ,  I- I-” Yuu sobbed aloud, almost howling, and as Kouyou angled his thrusts deeper and rougher inside of him, the raven reached up a hand to messily pull at Kouyou’s hair, while the other was concentrated on stroking himself desperately to completion. 

“Cum for me, _babydoll_ ,” Kouyou growled, pushing his hips up, and the raven was completely weak to his voice combined with his thrust.

“ _Yes_ , D-Daddy!” Yuu cried out, and then his hole clenched like a vice around Kouyou’s cock, his thighs clamping tightly around the blond. He came with much fervor, his body thrashing wildly in Kouyou’s grasp, a few tears escaping his eyes and rolling down his blushing cheeks. His entire face had turned a scarlet red, and his mouth was letting out an endless stream of moans of _Daddy, Daddy, Daddy_ until he rode his orgasm out fully against Kouyou’s dick.

Kouyou groaned at the sight, and the feeling of Yuu’s muscles wrapped around his cock so tightly like this. He grinded up over and over again into Yuu’s twitching hole, his breaths coming out in sharp pants, bitten off and ragged – until a wave of pleasure passes over him and he was shuddering, reaching his own release.

Yuu slumped down against him, Kouyou’s gradually softening cock still inside of him, and the raven leaned down to Kouyou’s neck, cutely nestling his head there. Kouyou took a few deep breaths as his hands fell to Yuu’s hair, petting him and caressing his hair lovingly. 

The blond looked down to Yuu’s soiled panties, smiling wryly at the lewd sight.

“How many of these do you own?” was the first thing Kouyou said, breaking the silence, catching Yuu by ultimate surprise.

“What are you talking about,” Yuu murmured sleepily, still basking in the after-effects of his mindblowing orgasm.

“Your lingerie,” Kouyou whispered, hands moving down to pat lightly against Yuu’s butt. Yuu smiled. 

“Enough pieces to make you happy,” Yuu purred, grinding his ass down against Kouyou’s crotch once more. The blond grunted in response, squeezing Yuu’s ass cheeks in his hands. 

“I could take you lingerie shopping,” Kouyou suggested as a thought.

Yuu pulled his head back from the blond’s neck to look excitedly into Kouyou’s eyes. “That sounds like a great idea.”

“You’ll let me look when you change in the dressing room, won’t you?” Kouyou smirked at the mental image. Yuu side-eyed him a little. 

“I could take pictures,” Yuu said, watching as Kouyou’s eyes glinted to him at that remark. “What a pervert.” 

Kouyou laughed. “Oh? I’m a pervert now?” 

Yuu hummed happily, squirming his ass against Kouyou’s dick once more. “Yes. You. _Are_.”

The blond groaned at his actions, giving a light smack to his butt. “ _You’re_ the one wearing such lewd panties to entice me. Can I be blamed?”

Yuu leaned in to nuzzle his nose adorably against his. “I guess not. Maybe I’m partially at fault. But… Aoi only wants to please his Daddy.”

Kouyou wryly laughed. “You’re doing a good job of that, my little flower.” 

Yuu grinned and snuggled happily back into his arms, finding content in cuddling him just like this.

“Don’t want this weekend to end,” Yuu whined, feeling Kouyou’s arms wrap around him protectively at his words.

“Don’t want you to go, either,” Kouyou murmured, pressing his nose to Yuu’s hair, breathing in his scent. Then, very impulsively, he said: “I want to see you again next weekend. Can I?”

Yuu’s heart galloped against his chest at his offer. “I thought a CEO would be far more busy than this,” Yuu teasingly replied, trying to mask his delight. 

Kouyou laughed. “I’ll clear my weekend out for you. I have a feeling you’re going to make me lose my job at this rate, Aoi.” 

Yuu raised an eyebrow to him. “Oh? Well…” The raven slid a hand down Kouyou’s chest, his voice coming out in a low sultry whisper. “If you don’t have the money to keep me here, I might just leave, _you know_ …” 

The blond outwardly stiffened at his words. “I see. Well, that won’t happen, babydoll, I’ll make sure of it.” He sounded unusually disappointed in his tone, and it made Yuu regret his choice of words for a second.

“I was kidding,” Yuu said softly, eyes fluttering up to meet Kouyou’s ones. The blond’s lips were in a frown, and his eyes had a look of concern in them.

“I’ve only just started getting to know you, don’t leave me so soon,” Kouyou murmured quietly, and Yuu had to strain his ears to catch his words. They tugged at Yuu’s heartstrings, and the confusion Yuu had felt before was quickly returning back to him. 

“I’m not going to leave you anytime soon,” Yuu whispered back, ignoring the emotions currently flooding over him, circling his arms around the blond’s neck.

He smiled softly to the blond, gazing sweetly into his eyes. “Don’t worry, Kouyou. I’m right here.”

Kouyou’s lips moved into a small, relieved smile. “Mmm.” 

His arms’ grip around Yuu tightened, and he locked the raven into a vice grip, as if afraid to let go.

~

“I don’t love her anymore,” Kouyou said, a short while later, when they’d fallen into comfortable silence with each other. 

Yuu wondered why Kouyou had bothered to say that to him, until he was opening his mouth to ask –

_Then who do you love?_

And then closed it, even before asking anything, because the answer had already raced through his head in a snap. 

 _Oh_.

~

“I’ll confirm with you again for next weekend,” Kouyou said, just as he drove up to the gas station he always dropped Yuu off at.

Yuu nodded his head absentmindedly, unbuckling his seat belt. The air between them had become tense, just like before, and Yuu found himself ready to go home and curl up in a bunch of comforters and fall asleep. 

Yuu hated it – this feeling, of uncertainty, of never knowing, of not _understanding_. He was so confused, because his relationship with Kouyou has never been normal from the start, has never fallen into the same old pattern he had with all his other sugar daddies. 

Kouyou had cared for him, _opened up_ to him, kissed him softly, and pampered him much more than a sugar baby deserved… And Yuu hated it. Yuu hated how much he liked it.

Yuu hated emotions.

“Here’s the payment for the weekend,” Kouyou continued, passing the raven a thick envelope. There was definitely much more cash inside, more than Yuu had ever received from the blond, but the raven didn’t bother to stay and open it up to check.

“I’ll be going now,” Yuu said in a quiet voice, quickly slipping the envelope into his bag. Kouyou seemed concerned at the subdued-sounding raven, looking over to him worriedly.

“Are you mad at me?” The blond asked, apprehensively. “Did you not enjoy our weekend?” 

Yuu found his throat dry when he spoke. “No. It’s just… The thought of school tomorrow makes me upset, that’s all.” 

“Oh.” Kouyou said, but there was still a hint of concern in his eyes. As Yuu moved to pull open the car door, the blond was hastily calling after him to wait.

“Can I at least get a goodbye kiss?” 

Yuu turned to him, sucking in a breath as he spoke. “Yeah.” 

He had meant to give only a quick peck onto Kouyou’s cheek, but the blond caught his lips and didn’t pull away for a good few seconds or so. Yuu’s heart thumped crazily as Kouyou savored his lips softly, obviously reluctant to let the raven go.

And Yuu wanted so badly to stay.

“See you again soon,” Kouyou whispered, as he unwillingly released Yuu’s lips. “I’ll text you later.” 

“Mmm,” Yuu answered with dazed eyes, moving away.

He got out of the car and felt the lingering stare of Kouyou’s on his back, until the car finally moved and pulled away.

Yuu clutched his bag lonesomely to himself, a finger moving to caress at his lips longingly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> things start getting a lil dramatic here
> 
> they still have amazing sex tho.
> 
> appreciate reading your thoughts on this story as usual! thank you so much for keeping up with this story as always ♡


	9. Chapter 9

The sight of Yutaka having fallen asleep on the couch with a book over his face in their living room was the first sight that greeted Yuu when he entered their apartment. Yuu had smiled at the sight, shaking his head at his roommate’s antics. He never did catch Yutaka doing anything other than reading, _really_ – besides cooking. Yutaka was the epitome of a model student and a filial son; Yuu had never seen anyone like him.

He walked over to the couch, and gently pried the book off Yutaka’s sleeping face, laughing softly to himself when he realized Yutaka still had his reading glasses on. He took the book and reading glasses off Yutaka’s face, placing them down onto the coffee table next to the couch.

Yuu then sat against the couch, caressing the side of Yutaka’s face affectionately, tucking offending strands of hair back behind his ears. Yutaka let out a quiet groan and turned his head in his sleep, looking rather annoyed at Yuu’s presence. The raven simply laughed at that. 

“Yuu…” Yutaka called out tiredly in sleep, and Yuu wondered if he had accidentally woken him up.

“Mmm?” Yuu replied, looking down to the brunet. But Yutaka’s eyes were still fastly shut and positively still asleep, and Yuu wondered if Yutaka was perhaps just dreaming of him.

“Don’t go….” Yutaka mumbled, tossing in his sleep once more. Yuu frowned at his words – was Yutaka having a nightmare? Should Yuu wake him up from his nap?

…And what was with men asking him not to leave them recently? _Jesus Christ_.

“I’m here,” Yuu murmured comfortingly, reaching over to hold Yutaka’s hand warmly into his. That seemed to calm the brunet down a little bit.

A while later, Yutaka’s eyes were gently easing open, wearily looking up to the raven, who was smiling back down to him.

“H-Huh? You’re back already?” Yutaka asked wearily, propping himself up against the couch. It was only in that second that he realized Yuu was holding his hand protectively to him, and his cheeks in turn immediately flushed red, embarrassed by the surprise sweet gesture. “What are you doing?!”

Yuu narrowed his eyes to him, mildly insulted that his affection appeared to be unwelcomed. “Says the person who was calling my name in his sleep.”

Yutaka’s face turned pale at his words. “WHAT?!”

Yuu couldn't resist a dry laugh at his reaction. “Why do you look so shocked? Did you miss me too much while I was away?” 

Yutaka’s jaw fell agape, incomprehensible fear washing over his face quickly.

“Did I say anything? Other than your name, I mean?”

“Um.” Yuu looked to him curiously. Why was Yutaka so worked up about it? It was just a dream, after all. And Yuu had thought they were close enough friends to _not_ get embarrassed to be caught dreaming of each other. 

“You just said two words – _don’t go_. Did you dream of me migrating or something?”

Yutaka then looked like he was holding back a long stream of curses from slipping past his lips, his face looking extremely furious at himself.

“How was your weekend, anyway?” The brunet asked in annoyance, wanting to switch the topic of discussion as fast as he could.

Yuu laughed and shook his head, knowing _exactly_ what the brunet was doing. 

“Well, it was great! I _told_ you, Kouyou is a total…”

Yuu momentarily paused in his words as he spoke, when he _actually_ remembered the past day’s events, and felt his stomach churn with bitter bile again. 

“Um… Actually… Not so much.”

Yutaka was instantly concerned, seating himself closer to the raven. He scrutinized Yuu closely, lips frowning when he noticed the red love bites against Yuu’s neck, clear and plain as day.

“He’s a possessive one, huh? I thought you didn’t allow your sugar daddies to mark you,” Yutaka muttered, noting sharply, his eyes lingering resentfully on Yuu’s neck.

“Um,” Yuu was instantly self-conscious, and he brought his hand to his neck, brushing his fingers against the hickeys he’d forgotten Kouyou had given him.

“Well… I had been too tired to stop him, I guess. And maybe I also…” The raven looked rather embarrassed. “…didn’t want to.” 

“What do you mean?” Yutaka asked, his frown deepening. “Was he violent with you? Did he hurt you against your will?”

“No,” Yuu said, turning his gaze away, a disturbed look on his face.

“Just… Things are getting kind of complicated.” 

The brunet looked a tad fearful at his answer. “What _kind_ of complicated?”

Yuu sighed softly, easing his eyes shut. “It’s just… Kouyou’s different, you know. He’s, um, sensitive. Really good-looking. Really good at _sex_ , too.” Yuu smiled at that point.

“He spoils me and he’s… you know. Perfect.”

Yutaka grunted at his words. “And?” 

Yuu bit his lip. “I think he… I mean, I knew he was attached to me before, but today he was… I think he’s… _too_ into me.” Was that the right word? Yuu didn’t want to outrightly say that he thought Kouyou was _falling in love with him_. Because Yuu didn’t want to acknowledge that fact, _no_. Yuu didn’t.

The brunet held his breath. “And you don’t like it? You think he’s being too obsessive? You know, Yuu, you can always cut him off, if you think he’s not respecting your boundaries and trying to push you into… _something else_.” He said the last two words so lethally, Yuu wondered if Yutaka had a personal vendetta against Kouyou. 

“That’s the thing,” Yuu murmured, a distressed look on his face. “I don’t know, Yutaka, he started saying all these things, like – like I deserved everything in the world, and he wasn’t the perfect man for me. And he said – he said he didn’t love his ex anymore, and then I started wondering why he was saying all of that, then – ” Yuu sucked in a long breath. 

“Then I figured he probably liked me. A lot. And it confused me, because when he said he wasn’t worthy of me, I felt – felt _hurt_. Why the fuck do I feel hurt? I thought it was because he was looking down on me, but then – then I thought about it, and I figured maybe it was because I _actually_ wanted him to be worthy of me. He’s more than worthy, really, and I felt so angry. And at the same time, upset. And I just…”

Yutaka looked to him with vacant eyes, acknowledging the situation. “I see. You know… Kouyou’s right. You’re worth so much more, you know, Yuu? You don’t have to get yourself involved with such a person with such emotional issues.”

Yuu grew even more troubled at his answer.

“Yutaka, I – I don’t want to feel this way, you know. I don’t want – I’ve always prided myself on not getting emotionally involved with any of these men, and now I’m – I’m falling like some damsel in distress. And I don’t want to. I don’t want to, when he’s thirty-five, and he owns this big company, and he’s so perfect it _hurts_ , and he’ll dump me aside when he finds a prettier, younger thing. It’s – just – _not_ – fair,” Yuu murmured, his voice shaky, a hint of anger in his tone.

Yutaka remained silent for a while, then – much to Yuu’s surprise – moved closer to envelop Yuu into a soft hug. The raven widened his eyes, shocked, but as Yutaka wrapped his arms tenderly around him, Yuu found himself nestling his head against Yutaka’s shoulder, seeking for comfort.

“Maybe you should drop him,” Yutaka coaxed softly, his voice gentle. “It’s not worth it, you know? You’ve come so far, and having one man ruin it isn’t worth it. If this is taking a toll on you, then you probably shouldn’t bother with him, Yuu.”

Yuu released a long sigh, reluctant at the thought. “But I – I _actually_ enjoy spending time with him. And it’s easy money. And he… looks like he needs me, Yutaka.”

The way Kouyou had opened up to him about his past lover and feeling insecure and weak because of that – Yuu didn’t think the blond would have opened up to just anyone, and Yuu didn’t want to have made the blond reveal a part of his heart to him, only for Yuu to flee in response. Yuu didn’t want to be _that_ person. Yuu didn’t want to make it seem as if he was using the blond for money – because even though in a way, he _was_ – Yuu genuinely cared for Kouyou, too. And he didn't want to cause him anymore hurt than he already felt.

Yutaka swallowed down the words he truly wanted to speak. “It’s up to you, Yuu. If you feel that… It’s worth it to take a chance with him, then go ahead. But… But I just don’t want you to get hurt.”

Yuu fluttered his eyes shut, snuggling further into Yutaka’s embrace.

“I know. You’re the best, Yutaka. I guess I’ll just… see how it goes. I’ve never felt so confused before, and this… this lack of control makes me feel so weak.” 

Yutaka smiled sadly in response. “You know, if you ever decide to quit this business and waiter like you used to do before–”

“You won’t accept rent from me, I know, I know,” Yuu laughed. “I appreciate the sentiment, Yutaka, but I’m an adult, and I should be able to pay my own bills. I have to be independent at some point, right?”

Yutaka exhaled despondently. “I guess.”

“But…” Yuu hugged the brunet closer to him. “It’s alright if we cuddle for a while more, right? I still don’t feel too good about today.” 

Yutaka’s lips curved into a soft smile. “Sure, Yuu.”

“Mmm,” Yuu snuggled happily into Yutaka’s embrace, leaning his head down against the brunet’s chest. “I like it when you’re nice to me. You’re always asking me to go away, and… Hold on. You haven’t told me what you were dreaming about. Was it a nightmare?”

Yutaka turned rigid at his words. “Sort of.” 

Yuu frowned. “Do you want to talk about it?” Yutaka wasn’t the type to readily talk about his feelings, but he thought he would try asking anyway. 

Yutaka hesitated as he spoke, shaking his head. “Not really, no. It’s nothing important, just… monsters and stuff.”

“Oh. Don’t worry, Yutaka! If you ever have trouble sleeping, just hug me to sleep. I’ll give you sweet dreams for sure.” The raven said, smiling cheekily in response.

Yutaka returned a small smile to him. “I’ll hold you to that, Yuu.” 

“Okay,” Yuu murmured, then relaxed in Yutaka’s hold, shutting his eyes close once more. 

Somehow or another, they fell asleep in each other’s arms, and true to Yuu’s words, Yutaka never even made a sound. 

~ 

Yuu spent the rest of the night with Yutaka, working on homework whilst putting a movie on at the same time in the living room. The night passed by languidly, with the occasional jokes and snide remarks as they ate Chinese take-out for dinner. Yuu didn’t go to bed until very much later – only after he took another shower – and that was when he remembered he needed to charge his phone for tomorrow.

A quick look to his phone, however, showed that he had several texts from the blond – and only the blond. There were five messages in total, and looking at them made Yuu’s stomach churn miserably in the silence. He had spent such a nice night with Yutaka he’d almost forgotten about the blond, and thinking about Kouyou brought forth a rush of conflicted emotions Yuu didn’t want to deal with.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Hey. I thought it over and realized I might have said some things I shouldn’t have said. I apologize if I stepped out of line and made you uncomfortable in any way. I know what our relationship is, and I don’t want you to ever feel like you have to accommodate me in any way._

**_Kouyou:_ ** _Are you home yet? It’s getting late and I’m worried._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Or are you just ignoring me? Please talk to me._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _You’re really mad at me? Aoi… I’m really sorry. Please don’t ignore me. I’ll worry about you._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I guess I can’t do anything if you don’t want to talk to me. I’m here if you need me._

Yuu drew in a breath, looking over his messages. Then, rather irately, he typed a reply back.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i hadn’t checked my phone. sorry. didn’t ignore you on purpose_

Yuu continued drying off his wet hair with a towel, and a few seconds later his phone buzzed with a new message.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Oh. I’m sorry for worrying. I just got worried you didn’t seem yourself when I dropped you off._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Are we OK?_

Yuu wanted to yell at him, _no, we are not okay, especially after you had gone and fucked it up by making me grow these feelings for you_ – but he didn’t.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _yeah we’re fine_

**_Kouyou:_ ** _Oh. Well… if you’re unhappy with anything, just let me know, OK? I never want to make you upset._

And Yuu didn’t know if it was in a fit of rage, or anger, _whatever_ , but something in him made him type out his next reply. 

 **_Yuu:_ ** _you’re not even my fucking boyfriend, so you don’t need to_

He cursed aloud after he sent the message out, annoyed that he’d allowed his emotions to overtake him.

But there was a part of him that _wanted_ Kouyou to tell him otherwise. There was a part of him that wanted Kouyou to spoil him with sweet words once more and tell him how precious he was to him. He wanted Kouyou to call him his _babydoll_ ; he wanted Kouyou to tell him he deserved everything in the world… 

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _But you’re mine. And I want to make sure you’re happy. And you clearly aren’t._

**_Kouyou:_ ** _Tell me what’s wrong and I’ll fix it._

**_Kouyou:_ ** _You know I care for you_

Yuu ignored the frantic beating of his heart as his eyes gazed over his messages.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i’m sorry. just stressed. and confused_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Why?_

Did Yuu really want to tell him the truth?

 **_Yuu:_ ** _nothing… i just. i’m tired_

…He couldn’t bring himself to do it.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _You can take your time to tell me, sweetheart. It doesn’t have to be now._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I’ll make it a point to see you as fast as I can. Will check schedule with PA tomorrow to see when my schedule can be cleared_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I want to make you happy. OK?_

Yuu smiled softly to his message, Kouyou’s words soothing him instantly.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _OK._

~

The next few days passed by in routine. Yuu went to his classes in the morning, and usually by noon Kouyou would have texted him, asking him how his day was so far. Yuu would chat casually with him, giving mundane replies about his day, and Kouyou would pepper him with compliments and sweet words until the raven eventually lightened up to him. 

Yuu had two dates scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday with two different sugar daddies – both his regulars – and he went out on a short lunch date with the first, scoring him a nice $650; and spent an evening out with the second, earning him another easy $800. The second sugar daddy had hinted to Yuu that he’d wanted to take the raven back to his home, but Yuu knew the hickeys that Kouyou had given him on his body hadn’t gone away yet, and the raven had declined, opting to return home instead. None of his sugar daddies knew he was seeing another, so he couldn’t take the risk. They tended to give you a higher allowance if they assumed you belonged to them _only_.

Yuu mentally chided himself for allowing Kouyou to mark him like he was _his_ , but the raven knew he couldn’t blame the blond, for the blond had assumed Yuu was only seeing him so far. But because of _him_ , Yuu’d had to put on scarves the past few days when heading out to classes or going on dates, for the love bites on his neck were _way_ too noticeable. Kouyou was an animal, _alright_ ; Yuu sighed at the thought. 

Things were still rather tense between them, but with time and distance apart it was gradually getting better. When Kouyou texted him, he was mindful of the fact that Yuu probably felt uncomfortable around him, and didn’t pester him for replies. He was back to his patient and gentlemanly stance, always asking after Yuu’s well-being, and Yuu knew Kouyou was trying to get back on his good side as much as possible, fearful that Yuu would cut him off and stop their sugar daddy and baby arrangement.

Occasionally, Yuu debated over that thought, but decided he couldn’t bear to do it to the blond. In a way, Yuu had developed affection for him to an extent that he wanted to _take care_ of him and spend time with him, just to help Kouyou fill that empty void in his life. And he knew Kouyou was trying, _really_ , and he wanted to help Kouyou be the man he wanted to become. Yuu wasn’t sure if he was in love with Kouyou, nor was he completely sure Kouyou was in love with him, but Yuu figured that it didn’t matter. No matter what kind of feelings they held for each other, it would have to work around their sugar daddy and baby relationship boundaries. They weren’t crossing it. And the both of them knew that.

Yuu just hated how upset he got when he thought about how kindly Kouyou treated him, only for it to be superficial. Yuu knew he wanted _more_ , for some reason, and he hated knowing he had lost control in this aspect, because all of his sugar daddies so far had been the _ones_ wanting more from him, not the opposite. Yuu simply blamed it on his lack of relationship – the last serious relationship he had was two years ago, and ever since he’d started this sugar dating lifestyle, he hadn’t had time to go out on proper dates

Sure, there were the occasional guys who showed interest in him, but Yuu never entertained their attention because he knew he didn’t have time to do so. He needed to work, because he needed the cash, and he had to choose between having an active love life whilst being broke as fuck, _or_ actually having enough money to last him through months, pay off his student debt, and even have leftovers to pamper himself with. Yuu chose the latter.

So, Yuu concluded, he wasn’t _actually_ in love with the blond. He was just craving for companionship, too, and Kouyou had been the first sugar daddy to actually live up to his expectations of a perfect boyfriend. He was good-looking, wealthy, and sweet. That was enough for the raven.

Though, Yuu knew his boundaries clearly. _No_ getting implicated with him. Kouyou had already stated that he hadn’t any plans to pursue a relationship with Yuu, so Yuu would stick to it. If Kouyou thought he wasn’t ready for a relationship yet, so be it. Yuu would steer clear away from that aspect, and focus on just having a good time with Kouyou.

Now all Yuu needed to do was _actually_ remember his advice.

~

Thursday rolled around and Kouyou texted him first thing in the morning, spontaneously inviting the raven out for lunch.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I know it’s early and you may not be awake, but my PA just told me a client couldn’t make it for a meeting today, so my noon is free. I was wondering if I could take you out for lunch._

Yuu had received it in the middle of his 8 am class, and for some reason it made him happy Kouyou thought of him the first thing when he received news he had an appointment cancelled.

Just the thought of it made him giddy.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i don’t mind. i’m in class now, i’ll get off around 11. you can pick me up then_

Yuu texted him further details on his university’s pick-up point, though he briefly wondered if the sight of a black Lamborghini picking him up at school would instigate curiousity from his classmates.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Great! I’ll see you then… Can’t wait :)_

Yuu had smiled to himself at the blond’s usage of a smiley. It was so out of character for him to do so, that it occurred to him that Kouyou was _really_ trying for him.

Perhaps he was overthinking things. 

Perhaps things needn’t be so complicated.

~

...Yuu should have known it was a _horrible_ mistake.

What was he even thinking, asking Kouyou to come all the way to his university to meet him? Yuu didn’t even have to see Kouyou’s car to _know_ the blond had arrived at his school. The moment he’d got off class and rushed to the university’s front entrance to meet Kouyou, a crowd of students had already gathered by the front, speaking in hushed whispers and gesturing excitedly to the car waiting by the gates. Yuu didn’t even have to _look_ to know it was Kouyou’s black Lamborghini that they were probably awestruck by, considering such cars were a rare enough sight around this area. 

Yuu found himself self-consciously walking past the crowd, putting his hands into his jeans’ pockets as he strolled casually ahead to Kouyou’s car waiting for him. He’d hoped he could quickly slip into the car and escape from the crowd’s lingering eyes on him, but when he was only three steps away from the car, Kouyou’s car door swiftly pushed open, and the blond CEO was stepping out of it, clothed fully in a suave black business suit, complete with a matching tie, looking perfectly like the head of a top business corporation. The suit was sharp looking and well-fitted around his broad shoulders, and the shirt sleeves were exquisitely cuffed and ended just around his wrists, showing off his hunky built. 

Yuu found himself swallowing down the lump in his throat as he took in the sight before him – suddenly forgetting the reason why he was even mad at Kouyou in the first place. The man looked like _sex_ on legs, oozing nothing but confidence and charisma around him, and the way his dark eyes fixated upon Yuu’s and smiled to him made the raven-haired so goddamn _weak._ It was the first time Yuu was seeing Kouyou dressed so formally, in a _suit_ , and Yuu wondered if this was how Kouyou dressed for work everyday, so domineering, so _handsome_.

The blond brought out a huge bouquet of flowers from inside the car – his default blood-red roses as usual – and Yuu instantly felt heat rush to his cheeks at the sight, knowing that if people weren’t staring before, they were definitely staring _now_. Kouyou took a few steps forward, charmingly smiling to the raven, then with rather apologetic-looking eyes, he presented the bouquet of roses to Yuu, rendering the raven speechless for a second.

“I’m sorry this lunch date was so abrupt, but I really wanted to see you again,” Kouyou uttered in a low voice, accompanied with a soft sigh, looking as if he couldn’t help himself when it came to matters regarding the raven. “Will you accept my heartfelt apology?”

Yuu’s heart was pounding so _hard_ in his chest he thought he was going to get a heart attack. “Y-You didn’t need to,” the raven managed to choke out, his cheeks a blushing mess. The university students standing all around them were still looking, and Yuu was painfully aware of that fact.

“K-Kouyou, we should… go.”

“Not until you accept my apology,” Kouyou frowned, adamant on getting a satisfactory reply from Yuu. The raven could hear lovestruck girls in the crowd cooing and aww-ing at the sight, and Yuu wondered if Kouyou _knew_ the kind of reaction he would get; and if Kouyou was doing this romantic act on purpose, to show that he was serious about the relationship between the both of them. God damn this blond CEO and his cunning ways in getting Yuu to melt. 

“I’m not even mad at you, idiot,” Yuu whispered in embarrassment, shyfully looking away and hurriedly grabbing the bouquet of roses Kouyou was holding into his hands. Kouyou looked pleased that the raven had accepted his gift readily, and with a nod, he led Yuu back to his car – but not before opening the car door for Yuu, for the raven to get in first.

Yuu knew Kouyou probably had guessed that Yuu had been having second thoughts about their relationship, and he was currently doing all he could to change Yuu’s mind. Yuu found his face completely hot and flustered as he got into the car, strapping the seatbelt over him. What exactly was the blond _doing_?! He was making Yuu’s heart flutter in all the wrong ways and he was making Yuu feel so loved and protected. Kouyou was _horrible_. Yuu completely didn’t know what to do with him.

“I thought it would be nice if I brought you back to the same hotel we had our massage at,” Kouyou began, as he started the car engine again and buckled himself back into his seat. “We’ll have lunch at an Italian restaurant there.”

Yuu just nodded mindlessly, looking down to the bouquet of flowers and trying to avoid his gaze. But the blond wasn’t having any of it, no. Not after days of not seeing the raven-haired, and spending all these time worrying over his delicate little flower. 

Kouyou looked over concernedly to Yuu, his voice dropping to a mere whisper. “I’m sorry I said the wrong things, Aoi. I know I made you uncomfortable. It won’t happen again.”

Yuu stiffened at the apology, his stomach twisting uncomfortably. “It’s…”

“I really don’t want things to change between us, when we have chemistry _this_ good,” Kouyou continued, breathing deeply. “I don’t want this to stop. I hope you’ll change your mind about me.” 

Yuu kept silent for a moment, unsure of how to respond. Kouyou just gazed to him with hopeful eyes, then moved a hand to cup at the scarf Yuu had worn around his neck. Yuu hadn’t realized it, but he’d worn the mint scarf Kouyou had bought for him last Saturday, the one from Yves Saint Lauren. A fond smile spread on Kouyou’s lips as he fingered the scarf, raising it to Yuu’s cheek. 

“The color really does suit you so well,” Kouyou said in a quiet voice, his gaze gentle. Yuu’s heart thumped loudly in his ears at his remark, and he hugged the bouquet of flowers closer to himself, eyes still firmly fixated down.

“Can I kiss you?” The blond asked, hesitant.

Yuu nodded, and in turn Kouyou was cupping the raven’s cheek with his thumb, pulling him in closer until the blond’s lips met his. Kouyou kissed him as softly as possible, his eyes shut as he did so, his breathing ragged.

Yuu wondered how much Kouyou was restraining himself from doing more. 

As their lips left each other, Yuu pulled away with uncertainty evident in his eyes, clearly having enjoyed the kiss as much as Kouyou did.

“I’m not planning to stop our arrangement,” Yuu murmured, eyes glancing up delicately to the blond’s. “So… don’t worry, Kouyou.”

Kouyou looked so relieved it made Yuu smile.

“I thought perhaps there was a boyfriend,” Kouyou said softly, his face settling into a comforted smile. “That perhaps… There were limits to the things I could do.” 

Yuu rushed to answer. “There’s no boyfriend. I just, got a little confused, that’s all.”

Kouyou’s smile widened. “That’s good to hear. Aoi, I – I think I’ve been craving for company so much that your sudden presence in my life has been more than overwhelming to me. And I might have ended up saying a few wrong things, out of… well,” the blond let out a quiet sigh. “Even CEOs make mistakes.”

Yuu shook his head, smiling. “It’s okay, Kouyou. I shouldn’t have… I shouldn’t have snapped at you over text like that.”

“No, it’s fine, it let me know what you were really feeling, and I would hate it if you were lying to me instead.” Kouyou quickly reassured, placing his hands back on the wheel. “Aoi… I just hope you’ll allow me to continue caring for you like this, like how I would if you were just a normal lover of mine. It’s what this relationship is for, isn’t it? To be able to give me the privilege of having you, without any of us having to commit with any expectations.”

Yuu simply nodded, cheeks slightly tinting in response. “It is.”

Kouyou smiled warmly to him, beginning his drive. “It’s fine, then. We’re fine, now.”

Yuu returned his smile. “We are.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> very cooped up with assignments, internship and my personal life lately
> 
> so updates may be a lil delayed. I apologise. trying to space the chapters out so i don't run out of content too quickly.
> 
> comments are appreciated as usual, i love reading what you guys think the most :)


	10. Chapter 10

It was apparent that Kouyou was a regular there, at the Italian restaurant, because the servers seemed delighted to see the blond once more, cheerfully greeting him as he passed the doors.

Then again, Yuu wasn’t surprised – Kouyou was probably _very_ familiar with the hotel’s staff by now, considering how regularly he said he frequented here. Yuu wondered if Kouyou used to bring his lovers here, as well, for dates and massages, and the raven found himself growing slightly jealous at that thought. It felt strange to think of Kouyou being with someone else, when Kouyou was so sweet and caring to him, treating Yuu like he’d been the only one in Kouyou’s life. And Yuu knew that it was selfish, and absurd of him to think such a way, but the mere thought of having to share Kouyou with anyone else made him sick in the stomach. 

He liked being the one and only person in Kouyou’s eyes. He liked being spoilt and pampered and given bouquet of roses every single time he let Kouyou know he was upset. He liked being called _babydoll_ and _my little flower_ and he wanted those names to belong to him, and him only.

…He also liked being fucked hard into the sheets, with Kouyou’s arms gripping his hips tightly, his lips groaning _only_ Yuu’s name over and over again.

Yuu wanted to monopolize Kouyou. Yuu wanted Kouyou’s heart to _only_ belong to him.

And Yuu knew Kouyou felt the same, too. Kouyou only wanted Yuu to be taken care of by him, and Kouyou didn’t want any other men in Yuu’s life. The raven remembered the dates he’d been going on for the past two days with his other sugar daddies, and felt his heart hollow at the memory; he knew, in a way, he was lying to the blond of his exclusivity, but it wasn’t like Kouyou ever needed to know. In the end, all of these dates boiled down to business transactions. Yuu was a product to be bought, and Yuu was paid for every second of his time.

Kouyou wasn’t his lover. Yuu needn’t be exclusive. 

But it made him feel nauseous with betrayal still, and Yuu hated feeling this way.

Kouyou ended up placing orders at the restaurant for the both of them, saying that he knew of the restaurant’s specialty and he wanted to let Yuu try it. Yuu just went along with whatever he suggested, since he wasn’t about to argue with a regular customer, whom also happened to be a big-shot CEO, whom was _also_ buying lunch for him.

A quick look at the prices on the menu proved that a meal here could easily feed a homeless family of three for a month, but it wasn’t like Yuu was complaining. 

“Do you have to return to the office later?” Yuu asked, casually striking up a conversation with the blond. He figured it wouldn’t do good to continue being so cold to the blond, when Kouyou had so nicely gifted him flowers and taken him out for a nice expensive lunch date.

The blond looked positively radiant at Yuu’s question, happy at the sight of Yuu being responsive to him once more. Yuu briefly smiled at that; Kouyou was always so obvious in his emotions. 

“I do,” Kouyou answered regretfully. “I have work at the office that I need to do. I can spend at least two hours today with you, though. It’s little, but it’s enough for me. I’m still working on clearing my schedule for the weekend, so hopefully I can spend more time with you then instead.”

Yuu bit his lip sensually at the thought of staying over at Kouyou’s penthouse again, remembering the wild sex they’d had the last time. _God_ , thinking about wearing that collar as Kouyou fucked him deeply into the sheets stirred heat within him, and he found his legs quivering, throbbing warmly at the thought.

“I hope you get to clear your work schedule.” Yuu murmured in reply.

Kouyou chuckled to him, as if harboring the same thoughts. “I hope so, too, Aoi. I usually spent my weekends in the office before I met you, but I’m trying to lessen that now… Now that I have better priorities.” His eyes flickered over to Yuu’s, filled with much desire. “What about you? How do you usually spend your weekend?”

Yuu grew rather nervous under his gaze. “I don’t do much, really. Most days I stay in, and that’s because my roommate’s a total hermit, too. He’s studying to be a doctor, and I usually stay in and make sure he eats and takes care of himself…” the raven stifled a laugh as he said, realizing he sounded just like Yutaka’s nanny.

“I’ll put on movies occasionally and pull him to the couch so he can watch them with me. I’m like his caretaker, basically.” As Yuu looked up, he saw Kouyou’s smile considerably reducing at his words. Yuu was mildly surprised – he hadn’t expected such a reaction. Was the blond jealous of Yutaka? Yuu knew he shouldn’t be so happy about such a fact, but seeing Kouyou go green with jealousy like this made him smug a little. 

“You seem close to him,” Kouyou said, his tone sounding as indifferent as possible. He grabbed for his glass of water and took a few small sips before speaking again. “He’s your best friend, isn’t he?” 

Yuu nodded. “He is. It’s strange, because I usually don't let people into my life so easily, but when it came to Yutaka, we bonded pretty quickly. He’s a good person, and he’s someone I can trust when it comes to things…” the raven smiled at the thought. “…especially with this whole sugar daddy thing. He’s convinced it’ll get me killed eventually.”

“Oh?” Kouyou’s interest was sparked, a wry smile forming on his lips. “Have you told him about me?”

Yuu remembered confiding in Yutaka about possibly falling in love with the blond and swallowed thickly down his throat. 

“Yeah.” 

“I see. What does he think about me, then?” Kouyou asked, curious.

“Um,” Yuu was reluctant to respond. Yutaka hadn’t been very favorable of Kouyou so far, but then again, Yutaka _never_ was too favorable of any of his sugar daddies. “Yutaka doesn’t really… He doesn’t exactly trust any men I go out with.”

Kouyou made a disapproving hum at his words. “Is that so.” 

“Yeah, he’s kind of like… an overprotective brother, I guess,” Yuu mumbled, shrugging it off. “But I can’t blame him. If he went out with random older men he met online, I’d be worried, too.” 

Kouyou let out a dry laugh. “That _is_ true. Except… I’m not so bad, aren’t I?” the blond’s eyes glinted rather devilishly to the raven. 

“Or _am_ I?”

The blond was _teasing_ him, Yuu thought, narrowing his eyes to the handsome-looking CEO seated opposite him. “I guess you turned out better than I expected,” Yuu admitted, reluctant to divulge more. 

Kouyou laughed, then leaned in, gazing to the raven rather fondly.

“And you… you’re just _perfect_. You’re perfect for me.” 

 _That_ was enough to send Yuu blushing. The raven looked down to his lap, playing with the napkin that lay there, pretending to be unaffected by the blond’s words; though the both of them knew Yuu was _absolutely_ irresistible to Kouyou’s charm.

“Why don’t you let people easily into your life?” Kouyou started, bringing the conversation back to the table. Yuu looked up to him, surprised at the sudden question. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t help but notice you said that. I just wanted to know more.” 

Yuu pondered for a second or two, startled.

“I’m not… exactly sure, actually. I guess I find it hard to open up to people easily.” 

Kouyou was instantly frowning at his words. “You do?”

Yuu was reluctant to answer further. He hadn’t realized he’d divulged that specific information about himself, and he was starting to regret revealing so much to the blond. Being a sugar baby meant that he was supposed to put up a front, and that meant being happy _or_ horny at all times. It would do no good to reveal his real self; it would do no good to show his sugar daddy that he was human, too, that he _wasn’t_ the perfect, idealistic sugar boyfriend Kouyou wanted. 

But for some reason, when it came to Kouyou, Yuu found himself disclosing private things about himself too comfortably, without any further thought about the repercussions that would come. Kouyou made him feel relaxed, _loved_ , and listened to, and it… confused the raven. It threw him off the pattern he was so used to before. It made Yuu forget that he was playing a role, that he was only acting as a sugar baby to the older man, and that he wasn’t anything else. 

And Yuu had let slip something personal about himself, without even realizing it. It was the first time Yuu had ever messed up in the presence of his sugar daddy, and Yuu grew distressed at the thought, his heart trepidating in fear. 

“It doesn’t matter, Kouyou,” the raven forced a sweet smile unto his face, but Kouyou’s frown only deepened. “I’ve let you in, so it doesn’t matter, does it?” 

Kouyou gazed to him, hurt evident on his face, confusing Yuu once more with his reaction.

Then, rather articutely, Kouyou spoke softly, looking genuinely disappointed at Yuu’s answer.

“It’s fine if you don’t want to tell me certain things, I guess. But I’m not dumb, Aoi. You may fool other men with your sweetness and your pretty smile, but it’s not going to fool me. And maybe you don’t trust me enough to tell me, today, but I hope you’ll consider trusting me enough to tell me these things in the future.” 

He had, in a single breath, taken Yuu’s breath away.

And in that same breath, shattered every illusion Yuu once had of himself.

Yuu shook at his words, clearly having never expected Kouyou to see through his guise so easily.

“Will you at least tell me why you don’t trust me, though?” Kouyou asked softly.

The raven’s gaze faltered, the answer ringing loudly in his head. It wasn’t so much the problem of distrusting Kouyou, it was more of a –

_I trust you too much. And I’m frightened to death, Kouyou. I really am._

Kouyou weakly smiled at the raven’s silence, taking it as an answer. “I see. It’s fine, then. If it’s too much for you to say these things. I understand it’s your choice to tell me whatever you want.”

For a moment Yuu forgot how to breathe.

“Don’t,” Yuu instantly reached for Kouyou’s hand on the table, gripping it tightly in his hold. “Please don’t… don’t get mad at me. I’m just scared. I’m _scared_ , Kouyou. So – please – please _don’t_ – don’t say these things to me.” 

Kouyou was clearly thrown off-guard, and the blond’s eyes were softening immediately at the sight of the quivering raven.

“I’ll never get mad at you, Aoi… What’s wrong? You know you can tell me.”

Yuu was breathing quickly, shaking his head anxiously. “It’s nothing, Kouyou, it’s just – it’s nothing, really, and I – I just don’t want–”

Kouyou held Yuu’s hand warmly in his, tenderly stroking the surface of his fingers. “Calm down, sweetheart,” Kouyou coaxed, his tone gentle, his face in an assuring smile. “Please just tell me what’s wrong. You know I’ll listen.”

Yuu felt himself on the verge of tears; and in the next second the words were tumbling out of his lips faster than he could even will them to. 

“It’s just – It’s so hard, I find it so hard to trust people because everyone has a motive, Kouyou. Even – Even me. _I_ have a motive. And I know you do, too. And you can’t lie to me, Kouyou. Because even bringing me out – giving me flowers – calling me sweet nicknames – you _have_ a motive. And whether it’s bedding me, or getting me to do your bidding, or – or something, I don’t _know_ , everyone has a motive. Everyone wants something from you, and it’s so hard – to find someone who doesn’t.”

Kouyou remained silent for a moment, pausing to take in Yuu’s words. He looked so calm, as if having expected such a response, that Yuu wondered if Kouyou had already guessed this trait about him earlier. 

“You’re right,” Kouyou clucked his tongue in agreement. “I _do_ have a motive when it comes to you. But you’re wrong in thinking it’s just for sex, or anything like that.”

Yuu was reluctant to press on, afraid the blond would hurt him with his answer.

“Then what is it?” 

The blond faintly smiled to him, then very resolutely – uttered words that dissolved Yuu’s fear instantly. 

“It’s to make you happy, Aoi.” 

Yuu sucked in a breath, feeling his heart palpitate in his chest helplessly, and he watched silently as Kouyou lifted the raven’s hand to his lips and pressed a soft kiss to it.

“Not even her,” Kouyou whispered so quietly Yuu wondered if the blond even meant for him to hear it. “Not even for her I did this.” 

Yuu’s hand trembled under Kouyou’s touch. The raven raised his gaze to meet Kouyou’s eyes, and saw the love that he’d seen too many times before in his eyes.

And Yuu completely didn’t know what to do.

“It’s not just practice anymore, is it?” Yuu asked, hesitant.

 _You’re not just practicing how to take care of a person anymore. You’ve already fallen for me._  

There was a faraway look in the blond’s eyes, but his smile was very much preserved for Yuu and Yuu only.

“I’m not sure,” Kouyou answered, but Yuu found comfort in it.

It was then that Yuu realized he was frightened of Kouyou no more.

~

They left the restaurant promptly once they’d finished lunch and Kouyou had foot the bill. On their way out, Kouyou’s hand discreetly slipped down to grasp Yuu’s one, enclosing their fingers together closely. Yuu had been startled by the gesture, but he didn’t pull away, and he allowed Kouyou to hold his hand on the way back to the blond’s car. 

Kouyou was clearly reluctant to leave Yuu’s side so soon, and Yuu adored how seemingly annoyed the blond was at his work for taking his time away from Yuu.

“Do you have classes later?” Kouyou began, his voice wavering as he spoke. Yuu questioned the sudden nervousness in his tone.

“No, I’ll be heading home.” Yuu replied. “Why?” 

Kouyou hesitated for a moment before continuing. “I thought I could… bring you to my office for a while.” Oh, _god_. The CEO looked so worried about being rejected by the raven that Yuu couldn’t help but smile at the sight. Kouyou looked as if he was a high school boy asking his crush out for prom.

“You don’t have to if you don’t want to,” Kouyou quickly interjected. “I just thought I could show you my office… since you did say you’d wanted to see it.”

“I would love to,” Yuu happily agreed, laughing softly as he saw the nervousness swiftly disappear from Kouyou’s face. “But wouldn’t I be distracting you from your work? I’d feel bad if I disturbed you from anything.”

Kouyou beamed at his answer. “Maybe you can motivate me when you’re there, then.”

Yuu grinned to the blond. “And _how_ would I exactly do that, Mr. CEO?”

The blond laughed, then shook his head. “I don’t know. It’s up to you, _beautiful_.”

Yuu felt his heart skip several beats. “People would question, though, wouldn’t they? Your company must be huge. They would notice a stranger entering your office.”

Kouyou flashed a clean smirk to him. “Aoi, I’m the CEO of the company. I think you’re missing something.”

The raven pouted. “ _What_?” 

“I do what I want, dummy,” Kouyou laughed, and Yuu was suddenly reminded just how important Kouyou really was. He always forgot the blond was powerful in his own right, when Kouyou has been nothing but kind and tender to him so far, as if he was beneath Yuu, as if Yuu was in control of him when it was supposed to be the other way round.

It nerved Yuu to think that he would be stepping into an environment where everyone knew Kouyou as the _boss_ , the CEO, the one who ordered them around and controlled their wages and salaries –

– whereas Yuu had only ever known Kouyou as the gentle, passionate lover, the one who kissed his hand and stole his heart all in a blink’s eye. 

~

Yuu felt completely underdressed once Kouyou had driven him to his office building (which _by the way_ towered high with over 70 floors in height) and parked his car in an empty spot in the basement, which Yuu was _pretty_ sure was marked for ‘VIP ONLY’. Being a CEO definitely had its perks, and Yuu didn’t know why he felt so nervous, slowly gaining more and more glimpses of the life Kouyou lived whenever he was away from him.

Kouyou quickly led Yuu into the lobby of their office, which resembled more like the lobby of a grand hotel instead; and the moment the raven stepped into the tall, golden-illuminated hallways and passed the receptionist desk – who enthusiastically greeted an anxious _Good afternoon, Mr. Takashima!_ once her eyes met with Kouyou’s – Yuu was aghast with horror. Horror was an understatement, actually, because the lobby was bustling with plenty of office workers coming and going, most of them returning from their lunch break, all of whom who recognized Kouyou instantly and lowered their heads in respect once the blond passed them.

Kouyou only offered them small smiles in return, keeping his silence, but Yuu had taken several looks at the people around him – all dressed in Armani suits, or Topshop pencil skirts – and there Yuu was, dressed in his plain shirt and tight denim jeans, with only an Yves Saint Lauren scarf to compensate for his shabby, peasant-like dressing. Yuu found himself tugging at the scarf around his neck, pulling it higher up his face, self-conscious of the way people were giving him once-over looks at his dressing and wondering why such a person was tagging along behind their blond CEO.

How did Yuu think it was a good idea to come to Kouyou’s office again, again? This was _so_ not his territory. As he stood next to Kouyou and waited impatiently for the lift to come, eyes still uneasily scanning his surroundings, Kouyou suddenly slipped his hand into Yuu’s palm and locked their hands tightly together. The raven-haired university student turned to glance at Kouyou, confused, but the blond only chuckled and shook his head, knowing Yuu most likely felt uncomfortable in such a working environment. 

The blond then turned to him and dipped his head lower until his lips were pressed against the raven’s ear.

“You’re mine, now, so act like you belong to a CEO,” Kouyou whispered in husky tones, sending chills down Yuu’s spine. The raven felt his cheeks flush peach pink, and he nodded meekly to the blond, squeezing Kouyou’s hand in his grasp. 

There were slight murmuring amongst the office workers who had gathered behind them, and Yuu immediately knew it was because of the blatant handholding and the sneaky whispering between him and Kouyou.

This time, however, as Yuu snapped his head back to face them, he gave them a sweet smile, shocking the office workers into silence instantly. Kouyou chuckled to himself at the sight, amused at how quick Yuu was to learn. The lift before them finally arrived, and as they got into the empty lift, Yuu pressed at the buttons by the side to hold the door open for the others to enter as well, but a moment soon passed and not a single person had dared to enter the lift they were in. 

“Don’t bother,” Kouyou said, leaning back against the metal railings in the lift, folding his arms as he looked on in further amusement to the raven. “Close the doors, use this card to scan against the lift sensor and press the top floor.” He then slipped out a card from the pocket of his business suit and passed it to Yuu, showing it was some form of ID verification pass of the blond.

Yuu looked to him with a quizzical look, but complied anyway, wondering if there was some sort of a rule Kouyou had instated that said no one could get into a lift with him. But before the raven could open his mouth to vocalize his question, Kouyou was smiling to him and offering an explanation, just as the lift started heading up.

“ _No_ , I don’t have a rule set up, if that’s what you’re thinking,” Kouyou cocked an eyebrow to him. Yuu looked away, embarrassed Kouyou had seen through his thoughts again. “They’re afraid of me, I guess. They probably don’t want to bother me much, so they just let me be. It also happened that those workers standing behind us also belonged to a department I don’t interact with much, so they don’t know me well enough to want to get into my personal space. Usually, if I meet managers or people who work directly under me, they’re more willing to enter a lift with me and strike up a casual conversation, you know, whatever. This company employs hundreds of people, so I can’t possibly know every single one of them.” 

Yuu hadn’t _ever_ felt intimidated by Kouyou, but from the way people were looking at him, awestruck, and greeting him all edgy and tense, Yuu suddenly realized he hadn’t really known Kouyou at all, _no_. Yuu had only seen the side of him that was endearing, forgiving, _loving_ , and perhaps even dominating, controlling, and _perverted_ , but he had gotten to know the interior of Kouyou without even knowing what Kouyou really was like on the outside.

And Kouyou on the outside was a _hot as fuck_ , charming suave-looking blond CEO who could make hundreds of people kneel down at his feet.

(In Yuu’s head, that meant: _Kouyou was sexy as hell with all that dominance and power he held_.)

That also meant it turned Yuu _way_ on.

“You bully them, don’t you?” Yuu asked suddenly, narrowing his eyes as he looked over to the blond.

Kouyou let out low, entertained chuckles. “Aoi, I’m not a horrible boss, if that’s what you’re trying to imply.”

“I’m not even _implying_ ,” Yuu smiled, and then he was skipping over to Kouyou’s side, reaching his arms up to wrap delicately around Kouyou’s neck. “You’re probably cold and mean to all of them, and that’s why they’re scared of you.” 

Kouyou’s eyebrow rose up questionably. “You like to think of me as a cruel and ruthless boss, don’t you?” 

Yuu leaned his lips up closer to Kouyou’s, leaving them only a small inch apart.

“Maybe,” The raven whispered, his breath hot and tantalizing against Kouyou’s lips. 

Kouyou didn’t bother answering him. 

The close proximity to Yuu’s lips was too tempting, and he had lowered his head in a second, bringing Yuu into a tender kiss, lips hungrily savoring Yuu’s soft ones. He nibbled on Yuu’s lower lip until the raven was moaning at the back of his throat, his fingers gripping tightly at Kouyou’s hair, and Yuu was quick to align his body right against Kouyou’s, his hips and crotch pressing directly into the blond, earning him several muffled groans from the CEO.

Kouyou held Yuu close to him with his arms around his waist, grinding the raven harder into him. _God_ , they’d only been apart for a few days and they were already _dying_ for each other’s touch. Yuu could feel himself slowly going dizzy in the midst of their fiery, eager kissing; both of their mouths enjoying each other’s tongue too much to even _want_ to pull away. 

The lift doors suddenly opened to a man dressed in a business suit, similar to Kouyou’s, a heavy file secured in his arm. The man looked bewildered by the sight of the raven and the blond kissing at first – but then his baffled look quickly relaxed into an amused smile, as if recognizing the situation before him. 

Kouyou didn’t bother stopping the kiss, and he was about to flip Yuu over and press him up against the wall of the lift when the raven jerked up and forcefully pulled away from him, now painfully aware that their rather _indecent_ act was currently being watched by some random stranger. Kouyou frowned in response, disappointed that Yuu decided to stop so soon. 

“Good afternoon to you, too, CEO,” the man standing before the lift said, laughing to the rather disgruntled looking blond. He must be one of those ‘managers’ that Kouyou said he interacted more with, Yuu thought, registering the teasing manner in which the man was currently speaking to the blond. There was _no way_ a lowly-ranking subordinate would speak so casually like that to the CEO of any company.

Yuu was still red in embarrassment, however, and as the both of them exited the lift, the raven shied away to hide behind Kouyou.

Kouyou sighed at the sight of the man, running a hand lazily up his tousled hair.

“Good afternoon, Akira,” The blond muttered, irked that Akira had interrupted his time with the raven. “What are you even doing at my office? Did you even get out for lunch?” 

The man that Yuu now recognized as Akira laughed in response. “Why are you so mad at me? I believe I just saved our company tens of thousands of dollars in our latest project. I can’t believe you’re mad at me because I _accidentally_ walked in on your little make-out session, which, by the way, has proven to me that you’ve not been getting any for the past year.”

Good _god_. Akira didn’t hold the same, sexy British accent Kouyou partially had, but the man was speaking in a similarly refined tone, and exuding complete class and confidence as he did so. There was something about the way he carried himself that reminded him of Kouyou, and Yuu instantly knew he probably held a high-ranking position in this company, perhaps _even_ the vice-president.

It didn’t help that Akira had relatively good looks, too, his hair a nice shade of coffee-colored brown, looking to be no older or younger than Kouyou himself. Yuu was _awed_ at the sight. Did handsome, powerful men just walked around casually in this office, or...? If Yuu had known sooner, he’d have dropped in on this area and tried to hook up with one himself.

The raven glanced over to Kouyou, wondering if he should speak and introduce himself, but the blond CEO was still shooting Akira a glare, still mildly pissed off his time with Yuu got interrupted. 

“Aoi, this is Akira, he works under me.” Kouyou huffed rather immaturely.

Yuu giggled at the rare sight of Kouyou acting as such. He _must_ be good friends with Akira, Yuu thought.

“He means to say that _I’m_ the vice-president of this company,” Akira corrected sharply. “Technically, he’s right, though. I work under Kouyou, yes. And I see I’ve finally met the person of your dreams, Kouyou. Aoi, nice to meet you. I’ve heard much about you.”

Yuu wondered what Akira meant by having heard much about him. Did Kouyou talk about Yuu on the regular to Akira? Was Yuu… _important_? And what was up with ‘the person of your dreams’? What _exactly_ had Kouyou been talking about to Akira with regards to Yuu?

Well, the raven would just have to find out from the blond later. As Akira extended a handshake to the university student, Yuu nervously accepted the handshake, eyes shyly gazing up to Akira’s ones with a sweet smile.

Akira was momentarily dumbfounded.

“Nice to meet you too,” Yuu murmured softly, eyes fluttering back down; but very quickly the blond CEO was cutting in and clutching Yuu’s hand back possessively into his. 

“What are you doing here?” Kouyou released a sigh, eyeing the file in Akira’s arm with much disdain. “Were those the reports I said I needed?”

“I’ve left the ones you needed with your secretary,” Akira informed dutifully, shaking off his daze from before. “Also, you need to loosen up with all that yelling at her, for god’s sake. She’s tense and edgy all over, I fear for her mental health.”

Yuu suppressed a laugh at Akira’s words. “I _knew_ Kouyou was a mean boss!” 

Akira briefly chuckled, looking over to Yuu. “Well, I won’t say he’s _extreme_ , but he certainly could be kinder.” 

Kouyou frowned in displeasure, watching the raven gossip about him with his subordinate right in front of his face. “I’m right here, you know.” 

“I’m just joking, Kouyou,” Yuu teased, clinging onto Kouyou’s arm and snuggling cutely up to his shoulder. That seemed to alleviate the tension a little bit, and it brought a small smile back to Kouyou’s face once more. 

“I won’t linger anymore,” Akira cleared his throat, saying, realizing his presence was unwanted. “The lift’s here. I’ll be heading back to my office now, Kouyou. See you around.” 

Kouyou shrugged Akira off. “See you.”

And then the vice-president was gone, entering the lift and taking a floor down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the long wait in between, I've been very busy lately
> 
> comments are appreciated as usual!


	11. Chapter 11

Yuu clutched Kouyou’s arm as they continued walking on, quickly passing Kouyou’s secretary cubicle, whom which Yuu finally managed to catch a glimpse of. Kouyou’s PA was a pleasant-looking young lady, with average enough looks that Yuu didn’t feel threatened by her presence. He’d always wondered if Kouyou had an equally hot secretary working under him, but Yuu’s fears were unfounded. Kouyou’s secretary appeared rather tired, though, just like Akira said, and her face was weary as she uttered a greeting to Kouyou.

“Welcome back, sir,” she said, rather routinely, her eyes at the same time curiously wandering over to the raven standing next to him. “Who’s the visitor, if I may ask?”

“Someone close to me,” Kouyou answered, looking over to Yuu with a fond smile. “He’s called Aoi. Don’t worry about him, he’ll just be in my office for a while.”

His secretary nodded, knowing better than to ask any further. “The reports Mr Akira left with me are now on your desk. They’re ready to be inspected and signed, sir.”

“Thank you, Chiaki. I’ll phone you if I need you.” Kouyou said, then continued tugging Yuu along, bringing him further into his office.

The whole level seemed to belong to Kouyou himself, and other than his secretary, there didn’t appear to be anyone else stationed here. The entrance leading up till his secretary’s cubicle had been tiled with white glass tiles, and the whole environment gave off a futuristic, transparent look, completely decorated in glass.

The moment they passed the doors to Kouyou’s inner office, however, the black started to set in. The walls were a solid black, and so were the matching cushioned sofas, surrounding a glass coffee table in the middle of the room. Kouyou’s work desk was to the side, an elongated grey workspace situated right next to a steep bookshelf, and high drawers completely filled to the brim with files.

Strewn paperwork and heavy files thick with contents could be seen on his desk, already, and Yuu wondered if _those_ were the amount of work Kouyou had to finish by today. Yuu had always assumed CEOs had people to do their bidding for them, but clearly it wasn’t, in Kouyou’s case. Yuu pitied the blond instantly, but realized the kind of money he earned had to come from somewhere. It made Yuu wonder how Kouyou had so much time to text Yuu on the regular if he had work _this_ much to finish constantly.

On the right side of the rather large room, there was a small refreshments bar by the corner, with a water dispenser and an instant coffee mixer. It didn’t look like it was used often, though – Yuu didn’t think a man like Kouyou with such cultured taste could survive on instant coffee everyday. He most likely got his secretary to buy expensive takeaway coffee for him instead.

“So?” Kouyou questioned, looking to Yuu expectantly with a smile. “Does it live up to your expectations of what a CEO office looks like?”

Yuu hadn’t known what to expect, really. Sugar daddies rarely ever brought him to their offices, only their houses; but now that he had seen Kouyou’s office for himself – and every furniture here looked as if they cost him a month’s allowance – Yuu was, _well_ , lost for words.

Kouyou’s office reflected the man rather well, Yuu thought. It matched the very way Kouyou decorated his own apartment, so Yuu was _certain_ Kouyou had a hand in decorating his own office as well. Everything was either in monochrome hues or made of glass, and it oozed control and assertiveness just like the blond’s very demeanour did.

“Everything looks _really_ expensive,” Yuu finally managed to say, eyes still busily scrutinizing the large room he was in. “And it’s you. Very you. It’s like your apartment.”

Kouyou laughed at Yuu’s amazement. “I fall asleep here, sometimes. So I guess the thought of decorating it similar to the place I live in might have crossed my mind. I consider the office my second home, really.”

Yuu raised an eyebrow. “Second home? Really? From the hotel to your office to your penthouse– it doesn’t sound like you spend much time at home, at all.”

Kouyou smiled broadly. “I can’t _exactly_ deny that. I promise to spend more time at home, now, though, since you’ll be staying over more often.”

Yuu’s eyes flashed amusement to him. “Am I?” He didn’t recall making such an arrangement with Kouyou… yet. Or had Kouyou decided for him, already?

The blond grinned and circled his arms around the raven’s waist, pulling Yuu in closer to him.

“Of course you are,” Kouyou’s voice deepened, his dark eyes gazing intensely into Yuu’s ones. “You’re my little flower, aren’t you? You’ll always be with me.”

Yuu willed himself not to blush under his gaze and words. “Do you always have to say such embarrassing things?”

Kouyou leaned his head down to nuzzle his nose softly against Yuu’s. “I do it because I know you like it. Don’t you?”

Yuu shot him a defiant glare, scrunching his nose up stubbornly. “I don’t like it.”

Kouyou laughed, then planted a soft kiss against the side of Yuu’s mouth. “You _love_ it.”

The raven blinked twice, slowly crumbling under his touches, and he turned his eyes obstinately away with crimson cheeks. “I _hate_ it.”

“Oh, _no_ , you don’t,” Kouyou grinned, kissing him gently once more, this time on the lips.

Yuu let out a low whine when Kouyou pulled away a second later, and tipped on his toes to re-capture Kouyou’s lips. The blond obliged him, and they fell back into their hungry kissing from before, hands raking up in each other’s hair. Kouyou’s tongue skillfully intertwined with Yuu’s, sending the raven shivering. Yuu’s fingers tangled gently into Kouyou’s hair, the raven’s half-lidded eyes looking up to the blond intoxicatedly as he kissed.

 _God,_ he loved Kouyou’s smell. He loved his cologne, and fuck, he loved the way Kouyou smelled like sex, so domineering, yet so _classy_ at the same time. Yuu wanted nothing more than for Kouyou to re-enact out his fantasies and bend him over desks and fuck him good and hard over his files and paperwork, flooding him with the rich, musky scent of his cologne, dizzying him further with the smell of sex.

…But his daydreams were short-lived when Kouyou eventually pulled away from their passionate kiss a minute later, reluctance burning vividly in his eyes.

“I have reports to look through and sign, I’m sorry,” Kouyou murmured apologetically, his fingers caressing down Yuu’s face, thumbing his cheeks gently. “I can’t spend too much time indulging myself.”

Yuu let out an audible whimper, a sound that worsened Kouyou’s need to have the raven further.

“Maybe later,” Kouyou whispered, kissing the side of Yuu’s cheek softly.

Yuu’s lips curved into a big, fat pout. “Then what am I supposed to do in the meantime? Sit on the couch and read finance magazines?”

Kouyou sighed at seeing Yuu so dissatisfied. “Babydoll, I do have a laptop you can use. Or I could… I could call up Akira to entertain you, or something.” As soon as the words left his lips though, the blond was retracting them. “Or not. I’d get jealous if I saw another man making you laugh.”

Yuu sighed exasperatedly to him. Kouyou _really_ wasn’t thinking this through.

“Pretty sure as vice-president, he’s busy enough, anyway. Do you use your subordinates as your toys whenever they’re convenient for your usage or what?”

Kouyou winced visibly at his words, and Yuu realized he might not have worded it in the best way possible. Kouyou eased his eyes shut, turning away from Yuu’s gaze.

“Fuck,” Kouyou cursed under his breath, sighing irately, raking a hand up to mess with his hair. “I didn’t think this through. I’m sorry. I just really wanted to stay with you for just a bit longer. It’s been a few days and – I just wanted to come up with an excuse for you to be with me. But you’re right; I shouldn’t have brought you here. I’ll have my secretary call a cab for you to take you home.”

Yuu frowned at the way Kouyou seemed to be placing the blame entirely on his account. The university student was quick to shake his head and draw Kouyou into a hug, placing his chin against Kouyou’s shoulder.

“Hey,” Yuu coaxed softly, raising a hand to gently soothe the blond’s back. “I didn’t mean it. I’m not angry with you, Kouyou. I’m really happy you brought me to your office. I’m really happy to be spending more time with you.”

Kouyou drew in a long breath and apologized whole-heartedly a second time, reciprocating the raven’s hug. “I’m so sorry.”

Yuu shook his head once more and pulled back, raising a hand to Kouyou’s cheek.

“I’ll stay, okay? I’ll find some things to do, no big deal,” Yuu smiled gently to the older man, warming Kouyou’s heart up instantly. “It’s not like I’ll have better things to do at home, anyway. I’ll stay here with you.”

Kouyou managed a weak smile. “I just… I don’t want you to feel like you _have_ to, or anything like that – I don’t want to force you to do anything, Aoi. I realize I had been selfish in bringing you here, and I – I don’t want you to think that of me, sweetheart. I’ve been trying so hard to make it up to you, and now I feel so horrible, doing this to you.”

Yuu’s heart walloped at his words.

“It’s fine, Kouyou. Just make sure you pamper me later,” Yuu teased, smiling up to Kouyou.

The blond nodded his head, returning his smile.

~

The rest of their afternoon passed in silence. Yuu briefly chatted with Kouyou in the start, as he skipped around the room and picked up interesting-looking ornaments (Yuu later hurriedly placed them back down when he asked Kouyou where he got them from and Kouyou replied with a casual “I won them at an auction in Paris last month” as he did his work). After a while, however, Yuu got bored of exploring, and he lounged himself across the black sofa, tossing and rolling around in it in boredom like a flopping dead fish.

Kouyou could only chuckle at the sight as he flipped through his reports, reading them carefully with a discerning eye. He wanted badly to go over and entertain Yuu himself, but he sat himself back behind his work desk, a pen in hand and reports in the other, sighing as he continued on with his work. He needed to get these reports done and signed by today so his company’s pending projects could proceed, and he knew pushing aside his work for the raven would be irresponsible behavior as a CEO. Still, he didn’t regret bringing Yuu into his office at all – the raven-haired student was too adorable to watch, from his seat, and he found himself watching Yuu with a certain fondness on his face, wondering however he got so lucky.

After immersing himself in – as well as trying to understand – the financial magazines Kouyou had available on the coffee table, Yuu soon fell asleep against the long-spread sofa, curling up into a fetal position as he did so. Once Kouyou noticed the raven was seemingly unmoving, and his chest was quickly rising up and down in a steady heartbeat, the blond moved to loosen his coat off himself and walked to Yuu on the sofa, laying his coat protectively over the raven. It got cold here in his office, and he didn’t want Yuu to fall asleep in the cold and fall sick. His coat easily covered three quarters of Yuu’s form, and Kouyou couldn't help but smile as he watched the raven’s peaceful countenance in his sleep.

The CEO lowered his lips to Yuu’s forehead, planting a soft kiss against it. Yuu fidgeted a little in his sleep in response, but made no move to resist, and Kouyou gave one last brush against Yuu’s hair before going back to his seat, determined to finish his work up as quickly as possible.

~

Hours went by without the raven realizing it, and it soon approached nighttime. Yuu woke up to Kouyou’s voice gently coaxing him out of his sleep, calling his name repeatedly until he woke.

“Babydoll,” the blond was saying softly, his fingers caressing down against Yuu’s cheeks. “Wake up. It’s getting late.”

The raven yawned shortly, straining his eyes open to meet Kouyou’s ones. Yuu’s eyes wearily struggled to remain open, and he vaguely noted that he was wrapped snugly up in Kouyou’s coat. The older man was only wearing his long sleeved buttoned-up white shirt with his tie now, looking like goddamn _sex_ on legs as usual. 

“What time is it,” Yuu murmured, bringing a hand to his eyes and rubbing at them cutely. Kouyou swallowed hard at the adorable sight.

“Time for dinner. I’ve prepared dinner for us here,” Kouyou answered, cocking his head to the coffee table before the sofa. There were plates of delicious-smelling cooked steak, and glasses of red wine to accompany it. Yuu found himself awakening quickly to the savory smell of Italian steak, his stomach growling hungrily in response. The last time they ate was many hours ago, and the sight of such appetizing food made Yuu’s mouth water.

“Did you make this?” Yuu instinctively asked, though as soon as the words left his lips he realized how dumb he sounded. There was no way Kouyou could make this in his office – there wasn’t even a kitchen for god’s sake.

“No,” Kouyou responded, smiling amusedly to the raven. “I wish I had, though, now that you mentioned it. But I got my private assistant to get me takeaway from the Italian restaurant opposite our office. It’s very famous.”

Yuu grinned to the blond gratefully, then slung his arms around Kouyou tightly. “Thank you for getting us dinner.”

Kouyou laughed a little in his hold, and tilted his head downwards to nuzzle his nose softly against Yuu’s one, something Yuu was beginning to notice the blond loved doing. “I couldn’t possibly let you starve, could I? I have to take care of my little flower.”

The raven hummed happily in reply, then released his arms around Kouyou, turning excitedly to the food that lay before him. “Let’s dig in already! I’m so hungry.”

“Mmm,” Kouyou agreed.

He watched as the raven took a bite of his steak quickly, letting out a loud, pleasured moan second later. Kouyou felt his stomach coil in response, torturously ignoring the lewd thoughts running through his head at the obscene sound the raven-haired just made.

Kouyou dug into his food as well, though his eyes never left Yuu as he ate, holding back wry chuckles as he watched the raven devour the food messily in his hungry state. The blond reached over occasionally with a napkin to rub bits of food off the sides of Yuu’s mouth gently, despite the raven’s protests.

“I’m not a kid,” Yuu huffed, slightly embarrassed. Kouyou just smiled and shook his head.

“I’m not saying you are,” Kouyou said, placing the napkin back down on the table. “Or maybe you’d prefer me using something else…” His mouth twisted into a smirk, looking over to the raven with a glint in his eye. Yuu narrowed his eyes to him, immediately suspicious of the change in his tone.

He didn’t move to stop Kouyou, however, when the blond leaned in to Yuu’s face afterwards, capturing his lips into a soft kiss. Yuu eased his eyes shut and allowed Kouyou to bite and lick at his lip, the blond only pulling away when he’d licked Yuu’s lips clean.

Yuu panted slightly as Kouyou pulled back from him, licking his own lips rather satisfiedly to himself.

“So sweet,” Kouyou commented, smiling smugly to the university student.

Yuu turned away with Kouyou’s kiss still lingering on his lips, blood pulsating wildly through his veins. The blond _always_ had that kind of effect on him.

“What a pervert.” He scoffed, barely covering up his embarrassment.

The blond laughed. “Oh? Am I now?”

“You so _are_ ,” Yuu huffed, adamant on getting back at the CEO. It wasn’t fair that Kouyou could do this to him constantly – make him blush and make his heart trepidate like a schoolgirl in love – with just one small kiss or gesture. It wasn’t _fair_ that Kouyou was so charming, so good-looking, so _gentle_. It wasn't fair Kouyou was constantly being the perfect Prince Charming.

Then his eyes spied the untouched glasses of wine on the coffee table and an idea struck him in his head, sending him grinning widely immediately. It was time for some payback to the blond. Yuu’s thin fingers reached over the table to cup for his wine glass, before bringing it to his lips and taking a couple of small sips, his eyes sultrily glancing over to Kouyou from his wine glass, smiling at him through pursed lips at the same time.

That instantly _did_ the trick.

Kouyou’s gaze quickly faltered as he watched the raven pose a seductive look towards him, with Yuu’s eyebrows raised as the raven cocked his head to the side. Yuu trailed his tongue along the edges of the wine glass, then proceeded to lick at his own lips rather provocatively, in a bid to savor the sweet taste of the wine.

“It’s good,” the raven purred, still licking at his lips, fluttering his eyes up sexily to the blond.

Kouyou felt the familiar coil in his stomach, heat flooding his lower regions. The blond was stunned to silence for a moment, eyes trapped in a daze watching the raven, and Yuu knew immediately he had the blond _fucking_ entranced and wrapped around his fingers.

“Very sweet,” Yuu cooed, crossing one leg over the other. He briefly raised a hand to tug at his mint scarf, gently loosening it around his neck, allowing Kouyou to catch a glimpse of the savage love marks he’d left on Yuu from Sunday. The marks haven’t completely healed, and were still clear pink-purple bruises, and Yuu knew it would _appease_ the blond to see them, in a way that it ascertained the fact that Yuu was his and his _only_. And Yuu remembered that fact very well, as he watched familiar lust and approval return to Kouyou’s eyes.

The blond held a territorial gaze as he looked to Yuu, voice deepening as he spoke.

“It is, isn’t it,” Kouyou echoed, leaning in once more to the raven. His hand gently reached over, cupping the wine glass Yuu had in hand, easing it out of Yuu’s fingers, and placing it back down onto the coffee table before them. Yuu held his breath with much anticipation as Kouyou pushed the raven-haired back against the sofa, lying him down on his back, before moving his fingers to grip at Yuu’s chin, tilting the raven’s face up to the blond.

“Very pretty,” the blond remarked, sinking his head down, his lips hovering just against Yuu’s jawline. He pressed soft kisses down Yuu’s jaw all the way to his neck, only pausing his lips against the very hickeys he’d created to admire them in sight.

“They look very pretty on you,” Kouyou continued in a dazed whisper, giving a quick lick at the pink-purple bruises. Yuu made a small whine as he did so, the raven’s fingers slowly slipping down to grasp at Kouyou’s hair, breaths coming out in irregular, shaky pants. Kouyou gave further licks against each love mark, until he was slipping the sleeves of Yuu’s shirt down his shoulders, following the trail of these bruises.

Yuu shivered in the cold, whimpering every so often the blond came into contact with another bite mark and sucked on it, inducing pain in the raven. Yuu bit his lip as Kouyou sank his teeth down into unmarked areas, filling them with more hickeys. Oh, _god_. Yuu was never going to be able to have sex with any other sugar daddies at this rate. He was allowing Kouyou to retain control of his body, and making sure his body belonged to Kouyou and Kouyou only. But even as voices yelled at him in his head to get him to ask Kouyou to stop, he couldn’t bring the will to do so. He _wanted_ it… He wanted to be marked and be left with evidence that Kouyou loved him.

 _Because Kouyou loved him_ …

…and it was the only thing that made Yuu feel so alive right now.

He tossed his head back against the couch as Kouyou gently slid his hand up underneath his shirt, swift fingers reaching for his nipples and pinching them within his grasp. Yuu hissed in response, feeling them harden under Kouyou’s very fingertips, his nipples slowly erecting under all of Kouyou’s teasing.

“Kouyou,” Yuu called out in another whine, just as he lifted his hips and hiked his legs around Kouyou’s waist needily. His hands reached up to loosen at Kouyou’s tie and unbutton clumsily at Kouyou’s shirt, desperate for the blond to get naked himself. Kouyou allowed the raven to strip him off his shirt quickly, and moved to toss it to the floor once Yuu was done.

Yuu took a moment to take in Kouyou’s bare chest, save the loosened tie now hanging off his neck, and the raven was once again amazed at how fit the blond’s physique really was. As he placed a hand against Kouyou’s chest and caressed it admiringly, the blond CEO chuckled in response, liking how the raven seemed so besotted with his body.

“You like what you see?” Kouyou teased, earning himself a giggle from the raven whose hand squeezed Kouyou’s chest pecs in his hold eagerly. Kouyou grinned at the attention, lowering his body further into Yuu’s grasp.

“I have a confession to make,” Yuu sang, hands greedily running up and down the muscles on Kouyou’s body. He eyed his abs deliciously, before lowering his gaze to the front of Kouyou’s pants, smiling widely at the junk he knew was tucked underneath. God, Yuu wanted to feel it in him already, fucking him, sliding in and out of his hungry asshole, sucking all of Kouyou in…

“Tell me,” Kouyou prompted, cocking up an interested eyebrow to the raven-haired underneath him. “Do you have some desires I should be wary of?”

Yuu snorted, rolling his eyes up to him, pulling at the tie adorning Kouyou’s neck. “ _You’re_ the one who put me in a damn collar on our first night together.”

Kouyou let out a short laugh. “You _liked_ it, honey. Now tell me what you’re hiding from me.”

The raven sniggered as he began. “Well…” Yuu looked away, avoiding Kouyou’s gaze, his fingers reaching up to play with the blond’s tie mindlessly. It perked Kouyou’s interest even more. “On our first date, when you told me you were a CEO and had your own office, _well_ …” Yuu’s voice trailed off in a sickeningly sweet tone as he clutched the tie in a harsh grip.

“I kinda… fantasized about you fucking me over your work desk.”

Kouyou had a look of surprise on for a moment, as if astonished Yuu would admit that to him so outrightly, but gradually his face settled back into his usual smirk, realizing he’d underestimated the raven _way_ too much.

The blond clucked his tongue, face fondly looking down to the raven. “I see. And I’m guessing you’re telling me that now because…”

Yuu shrugged his shoulders, eyes blinking up innocently to the blond. “I don’t _knooow_. Do whatever you want with this information.”

All Kouyou did was laugh, as if expecting such a response from the raven already.

Then he was dropping his head next to Yuu’s ear, lips whispering out in a husky voice, “you love pretending to be innocent, don’t you. Don’t you know innocent preys like you get eaten up too easily? Especially by big bad wolves like me.”

Yuu trembled slightly under his voice, and he was taken aback in complete shock when the blond wrapped a strong arm around him and pulled him into a harsh grip, throwing his body effortlessly over Kouyou’s shoulder.

The raven felt a rush of adrenaline through his body as the blond CEO strode over to his work desk, clearing his files and reports all in a single arm swipe. They flew to the ground in a mess, but Kouyou barely gave a damn, and it _excited_ Yuu to think that Kouyou wanted him so much to the point where he was willing to get rid of what _may_ be important reports to him and the company – just to fulfill Yuu’s fantasy and fuck him hard over his work desk.

Three minutes later and their clothes were off.

Two minutes later and Yuu was bent over the work desk, naked except for the cotton panties he’d chosen to wear today, tugged down around his mid-thighs. His ass was perched up high; his face slumped against the table as his fingers grasped the edges of the desk tightly. His slowly erecting cock rubbed against the surface of the now-cleared desk, and the friction of it all made Yuu moan, his ass quivering in _want_ underneath Kouyou’s sinful gaze.

A minute later and Kouyou had spread open Yuu’s plump ass cheeks, coated them generously with lube with his fingers, and felt as Yuu’s inner wall muscles pulsated, anticipating and begging for more.

“Daddy, _please_ fuck me,” Yuu pleaded, cock twitching helplessly against the desk.

A second later and Kouyou’s hard dick had slipped inside of Yuu’s entrance, granting him what he wished for. His cock was as thick as Yuu remembered, and the moment it entered him Yuu let out the breath he’d been holding into a length moan, ass pushing back instantly to take more of Kouyou in. Kouyou’s cock felt hot and full inside of him, and Yuu savored the feeling, whimpering along to Kouyou’s satisfied groans as he relentlessly pushed himself in.

“Still so tight as ever around my cock,” Kouyou grunted, feeling the raven’s muscles squeeze him tightly with every inch he was pushing into the raven. He gripped Yuu’s ass roughly into his hands, plunging himself deeper in until he was balls-deep, and Yuu was trembling, his body happily accepting the intrusion.

“I’m always ready to be used by you, _Daddy_ ,” Yuu moaned, shaky thighs fidgeting impatiently against the blond’s legs, wanting his Daddy to start fucking him fast and hard already. Kouyou gave a tight slap to his ass, clearly disapproving of how the raven was telling him what to do.

“I fuck you whenever and however I want,” Kouyou growled, and then he was pulling out fast and slamming in even faster, again and again. Yuu went instantly weak – his fingers were losing grip of the table, and all he could do was lay there and be fucked by the blond repeatedly, Kouyou’s thick cock sliding easily in and out of Yuu as he cursed at Yuu’s tightness and whispered vulgar thoughts about Yuu’s ass to the raven.

Yuu’s cock was hard as fuck at the knowledge of the CEO taking pleasure in this, taking pleasure in participating in Yuu’s fantasy, taking pleasure in _knowing_ Yuu relished in being fucked by such a dominant, powerful man like Kouyou. As pre-cum dripped down from his cock, smearing the surface of the desk, Yuu wondered how many times Kouyou had sat here, doing his work on this very table, and how Kouyou would never be able to look at this desk the same way again, not after Yuu was so being dirtily fucked against it, _no_.

“ _Nnngghh_ , _Daddy…_ ” Yuu let out a shameless moan as he snapped up his hips and met Kouyou’s furious thrusts, and as Kouyou spread him open further and shifted slightly to fuck him in new angles, Yuu felt Kouyou graze his prostate in one of them, and let out a loud whine at that, his body shuddering at the intense pleasure it sent him.

Kouyou took note and began assaulting his prostate, quickening his pace as he thrust harder and harder into the raven, utterly wrecking the younger man into high-pitched shrieks and heavy panting.

“Right _there_ , fuck, K-Kouyou…! _D–Daddy Kouyou!_ Please, I– N–No…!” Yuu yelled out, his voice trembling, and he briefly wondered if Kouyou’s private assistant could hear them from outside, but Yuu didn’t give a fuck, _no_. Not when he was seeing stars from the way Kouyou was riding his cock into him and not when he was feeling pleasure _this_ good. In fact, the thought of _someone_ possibly overhearing the way Kouyou could reduce him into screams and moans made Yuu even _hornier_. Fuck, Yuu was such a slut when it came to Kouyou…

“What a naughty little babydoll…” Kouyou commented, slapping Yuu’s juicy ass cheek teasingly, the pain sending an immediate jolt to the raven’s cock. Yuu then felt Kouyou’s hand reaching for his arms and pinning them ruthlessly behind his back, making sure Yuu was entirely under his power. Yuu bucked back against his thrusts, squeezing his muscles harder and harder around his thick cock, earning himself loud groans from the blond CEO. God, Kouyou felt so good, Kouyou was his _Daddy_ , Kouyou held control over him…

“Fuck,” Kouyou suddenly cursed, his thrusts slowing down for a moment. Yuu let out a spoilt whine at that, mewling for Kouyou not to stop. “Someone’s coming.”

 _Fuck_ that. “I don’t care– _mmffgh_ ,” Yuu felt the blond quickly slap a hand over the raven’s mouth, muffling his cries. Still thrusting slowly into Yuu, Kouyou listened tensely to the sounds outside his door, only relaxing when he heard his secretary’s voice.

“Sir, I’ve just gotten the fax you mentioned you wanted. Do you want me to send it in immediately?”

Kouyou then returned to his hard and fast thrusts, reducing Yuu’s breathing into muffled labored gasps, and the raven could feel tears welling up in his eyes as he struggled to keep as quiet as possible, though he wasn’t doing very well when a moan was slipping out of his mouth every other second or so. Kouyou pressed his hand over Yuu’s mouth tighter, making sure the raven was as silent as possible.

“If you don’t want her to come in and see you being fucked like such a slut, stop moaning like a fucking whore,” Kouyou hissed in a dangerous whisper to the raven, but his thrusting never stopped, and Yuu couldn’t really tell in the midst of all this blinding pleasure _but_ – he was almost certain Kouyou was fucking harder into him, as if _wanting_ to see Yuu give in to his screams, as if _wanting_ the enact the very image he’d just painted, of being walked in, of allowing people to see the dirty slut his raven-haired flower really was…

Yuu panted weakly into Kouyou’s hand, distressed, his face flushed in a dark crimson, giving a timid nod in reply to the older man.

“Not now, Chiaki. I’ll collect it tomorrow morning – you may be dismissed for the night.” Kouyou ordered loudly, smugly looking to the raven-haired writhing underneath him. Yuu’s hard cock was still leaking against his desk, painful and hard from the lack of attention.

“Thank you, sir.” His secretary responded from outside the door, and Yuu could vaguely hear sounds of her heels clucking away, and only when they drifted off into silence did Kouyou release his hold over Yuu’s mouth.

“ _Daddy_ ,” Yuu whined, pouting at the blond’s rough treatment to him. Kouyou raised an eyebrow to him, then slipped his cock out and flipped the raven onto his back against the desk. The raven mewled at the loss, and gazed up to the blond through hooded eyes, stretching his legs open wide and exposing his gaping hole to the older man.

“Fuck me, _Daddy_ , I want you back inside my tight ass,” Yuu moaned sexily, with blush tinting his cheeks, not missing the way Kouyou lewdly stared to him as he spoke.

“You don't even _know_ how fucking slutty you look right now,” Kouyou cursed, pushing his hard cock right back into Yuu’s ass, and the raven was loudly moaning as pleasure engulfed him once more, his muscles greedily sucking Kouyou back in.

“I’ve been so _bad_ , so punish me…” Yuu wrapped his legs tightly around Kouyou’s waist, forcing the blond’s cock deeper into him. The raven’s eyes fell shut and his mouth parted as Kouyou began steadily rocking into him again, increasing his pace gradually until he was back to his hard and fast thrusts like before.

“Yes! _Daddy_! Yes _, fuck,_ I’m your naughty little babydoll, t-treat me like I… I’m… _oh_! _Nnnnggghhh_ Daddy!” Yuu cried out helplessly, circling his arms weakly around Kouyou’s neck as his sharp nails dug into Kouyou’s smooth back. The blond grunted as Yuu dragged his nails across his back, and he pushed his hips up harder, fucking the raven heatedly with his cock.

“ _Ah, ah, ah, ah!_ Daddy! Y-You’re s-so m-mean–” Yuu screamed, the heat building up faster and faster inside of him along with Kouyou’s thrusts until he was no more, his cock shooting ribbons of cum all over his chest and stomach.

“Fuck,” Kouyou hissed at the sight, feeling his own release coming as well, easing his eyes shut when he felt his stomach knot with familiar sensations. He slapped the back of Yuu’s ass loudly, this time smacking him so hard Kouyou was certain he’d left behind a lingering handprint against his ass. Yuu whimpered, his ass wriggling cutely against Kouyou’s cock, and the way his ass muscles contracted around Kouyou was enough to send him leaking right into the raven’s ass.

After Kouyou had emptied himself right inside of Yuu, he was pulling out, lowering Yuu back against his work desk. Yuu’s hair was a complete mess, sticking all over to his sweaty, blushing face, and his eyes were fluttering up weakly to the blond, beckoning for the older man to give him a kiss.

Kouyou obliged him, pressing his lips gently down against Yuu’s, and the both of them soon indulged in some heavy kissing and panting before finally collapsing next to each other in sheer exhaustion.

“I hope that somewhat satisfied your fantasy,” Kouyou said, after catching his breath, turning his eyes to meet Yuu’s. “I know it satisfied mine.”

Yuu laughed softly, cocking his head cutely to Kouyou. “You _always_ satisfy me, handsome.” 

Kouyou grinned, pulling the raven into his arms. “A pleasure to do so, sweetheart.”

“Mmm,” Yuu murmured, nuzzling his head against Kouyou’s chest. “You always treat me the best.”

The older man smiled. “Of course I will, honey,” he whispered, stroking a hand down Yuu’s shoulder-length hair. “You’re my precious little flower.”

They lay there motionless for a while, basking in each other’s presence, until Yuu broke into a small yawn and found himself wearily rubbing at his eyes.

“Tired?” Kouyou asked gently.

Yuu nodded his head, sighing. “It’s getting late, too. Maybe I should…”

“You could stay the night,” Kouyou rushed to say, his voice hopeful. “Or do you have early classes tomorrow?”

Yuu looked to him with a small smile. “Not until afternoon, no. I guess I could stay with you tonight.”

Kouyou returned his smile. “That’s great. Do you feel like moving to my place or are you content with spending a night with me in my office?”

Yuu eyed him playfully. “Your office ain’t half bad. Plus, I’m a little too sore to move now. Ow.”

The blond grinned to him. “I’ll go get the pillows and blankets I’ve stored here, then.”

Yuu watched as Kouyou dressed himself in his briefs, before striding over to the coffee table before the sofa, pushing it aside to make room. The blond then transformed the black sofa into a makeshift bed by pulling out a hidden layer of cushion underneath, complete with matching black pillows and blankets ready to be used.

Yuu laughed at the convenience of it all – of course Kouyou would have these sort of things in his office. The older man did mention he sometimes spent nights here, after all.

After making sure he had cleared the food and plates on the coffee table, Kouyou then plopped himself onto the sofa-bed, patting the empty spot next to him with a smirk.

“Come here and cuddle with me,” Kouyou cooed, gazing up to the raven-haired.

Yuu couldn’t resist a giggle. “Okay, handsome.”

He ended up grabbing for Kouyou’s button-up white shirt lying on the floor and clothing himself in it, before crawling into the sofa-bed with Kouyou, quickly falling into his embrace. Yuu had his head buried back into Kouyou’s chest, with Kouyou’s arms wrapped around his waist.

“I could get used to this,” Kouyou whispered, lips pressed against Yuu’s hair. Yuu looked up to him cutely with a sly smile. 

“Get used to _what_?” Yuu asked.

“Sleeping with you in my arms,” Kouyou smiled, sighing, eyes looking adoringly to the raven-haired.

Yuu’s cheeks reddened. “Is that so.”

“Mmmhmm,” Kouyou tightened his grip around Yuu, snuggling in closer to him.

The both of them fell asleep locked in their embrace, their breathing soft against each other’s skin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kouyou's office (level) is separated into two parts. The first part is where the receptionist desk will be, and it's more white/transparent/futuristic in its design. Like this --> [here](http://d-e-s-i-g-n.ru/interiors_office/seriya118.files/image003.jpg). Once you pass the glass doors to Kouyou's inner office on the other hand, it's more black. Like this --> [here](http://fc06.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2013/101/d/b/ceo_office_01_by_apexlpredator-d617la9.jpg).
> 
> They have office sex because I couldn't resist ahahaha sorry <3
> 
> comments are appreciated as usual <3 If you want to keep track with this story, do know that you can click on the Subscribe button to receive email updates whenever I update this fic! :)


	12. Chapter 12

“Sir, I’ve gotten your usual coffee brewed and ready…” were _not_ the words Yuu expected he would wake up to, but apparently it was so, when Kouyou’s private assistant walked in on them at eight in the morning with a coffee mug in hand.

Yuu had been the first to awaken, still clad in Kouyou’s white buttoned-down shirt, which proved to be too large for his slender built. He sat up in bed, sleepily rubbing at his eyes, trying to comprehend what was going on. Then he saw the secretary’s embarrassed and red face, and he knew right away they’d just been walked in on.

Kouyou woke up a second later, eyes groggily straining to open as he propped himself up in bed – still shirtless – and when he finally caught sight of his secretary’s presence, all he did was heave a low sigh, and wave the woman out.

“Leave the coffee on the table,” Kouyou instructed in a raspy voice, too tired to deal with any confrontation.

“Y-Yes, sir,” His assistant looked too petrified to even question her boss. She left the mug on his desk, her face only turning paler at the sight of the mess they’d left against the table last night.

“Leave,” Kouyou said, and she was well on her way out, her face white as a sheet. “And don’t tell Akira about this, for god’s sake.”

“Y-Yes, s-sir!” His assistant affirmed, closing the door tightly shut behind her.

Yuu, who had been keeping silent as he watched the display before him, instantly burst into amused giggles once she was out, enclosing his arms up around the blond’s neck.

“So mean,” Yuu gazed sultrily to the older man, lips slipping out a delighted laugh. “The poor woman was trembling. Are you this strict with all your workers?”

Kouyou uttered another sigh, running his fingers up through his messy bed hair. “I did tell you I’m rather different at work. I’m not very… accommodating.”

Yuu leaned in to the blond, grinning up to him. “You’re the boss, afterall. You tell them _what to do_.” And he accentuated his last words in such a provocative whisper it chilled the blond to the bone.

“Mmm, I do,” Kouyou dropped his head down and brushed his lips against Yuu’s ones. They kissed briefly without tongue, pulling away mere seconds later. Kouyou cupped his hand against Yuu’s cheek, caressing the raven with his thumb.

“Get breakfast with me, then I’ll send you home.” The blond breathed to Yuu, his dark, intense eyes gazing affectionately down into Yuu’s ones.

Yuu teasingly smiled up to him. “I don’t sound like I have a choice in this matter, do I?”

Kouyou laughed, lowering his arms around the raven’s back to pull Yuu closer into him. “You aren’t going to refuse me, are you?”

Yuu stared to him with mock horror. “Of course not… _boss_. I’ll do whatever you tell me to!”

It only elicited more laughter from the blond. “Thank god you don’t work for me,” Kouyou chided, shaking his head. “I doubt I’d get any work done with you around.”

“Why?” Yuu quipped. “Too busy fucking me?”

Kouyou simply smiled and sighed exasperatedly to the raven, fingers tucking Yuu’s hair strands behind his ears. “Well… you aren’t _exactly_ wrong.”

Yuu grinned, fluttering his lashes up to Kouyou purposefully, teasing the older man. “What if I applied to be an intern here? Would you let me work under you?”

Kouyou’s eyes narrowed to him. “Why, is the allowance I give you not enough?”

Yuu’s lips curved into a cute pout in response. “Of course not. I just wondered how you’d like me in a tight blouse and pencil skirt, constantly calling you _sir_.”

The blond bit his lip lustfully at the crude mental image that just crossed his head. “You can do that, already, you know. You could dress up privately for me back at home…”

Yuu smirked at his words. “Oh? So I guess we’re role-playing next. Aren’t you a kinky little one, _Daddy_ …”

Kouyou chuckled, shaking his head. “I don't know what I did to deserve you,” he whispered, squeezing the cute raven in his grasp. “You’re so perfect. So small and naughty for me to pamper.”

Yuu giggled quietly and nuzzled further into his neck. “What a demanding Daddy. Do you only fantasize about seeing me in slutty clothing all day or what?”

“Mmm,” Kouyou laughed, hands tenderly stroking up the back of Yuu’s neck. “I have a ton of fantasies about you, that are not restricted to just clothing–”

“ _Mr Suzuki! Mr Takashima is currently busy and is not to be disturbed_ –”

Kouyou’s secretary’s frantic yelling outside the door was the only warning they’d gotten, before the door burst open with the company’s vice-president standing by the entrance, holding heavy folders in hand. Chiaki looked rather apologetically to the blond CEO as she stood helplessly behind Akira, only turning around to leave when Kouyou nodded in understanding and waved at her to go. 

Kouyou let out a deep sigh when he turned his attention back to Akira. He curled his arm around Yuu protectively, hiding the raven’s face in his bare chest. “What is it, Akira.”

There was a heavy smirk planted on Akira’s face. “I _knew_ it. Your car hadn’t moved an inch in the car park, and I knew you didn’t leave your office last night. Didn’t think your pretty little raven stayed with you too, though. Did you even get any work done last night? And Jesus Christ, put a shirt on.”

Kouyou looked too fed up to answer. Yuu briefly giggled at how annoyed Kouyou always perpetually looked whenever it came to dealing with matters in the office. It was just – _so_ – vastly different as compared to the gentleness Kouyou always showed him when they were alone, or the way Kouyou would laugh softly with him each time Yuu teased him or kissed him. Kouyou _really_ was at his happiest with the raven – and Yuu felt pride swell in his chest knowing that.

“I don’t believe you really get a say in how I choose to conduct my work, Akira,” Kouyou mumbled, fingers mindlessly playing with Yuu’s hair strands. “Why did you come up here anyway, other than to bother me like you always do?”

“ _Pfft_ ,” Akira snorted, striding in to the office. “Say that to me again when you’re dragging me out to bars and drowning yourself in alcohol moaning about how lovesick you are and how you fucked up with your pretty little raven–”

At this point in time Kouyou was glaring to him so savagely, daring Akira to go on, that Akira could only let out a laugh in response.

Yuu’s heart drummed so furiously in his chest at Akira’s words, wondering if what he said was true. Had Kouyou been talking _that_ much about him to Akira? Was Kouyou _that_ badly affected by what Yuu said and did to him? He had been cold to Kouyou the past week, after all, and Yuu wondered if Kouyou had been going out drinking because of that.

Yuu couldn't help a smile at the mental image of Kouyou ending up so distressed because of him. Did he mean that much to the blond?

“I believe I said to _never_ talk about that,” Kouyou hissed, his voice like venom as he scowled up to the brunet. “Get out of my office.”

“You know I’m only trying to help,” Akira laughed, seemingly unaffected by Kouyou’s anger. “Anyway, I came in here to tell you I got the go-ahead from Nishikawa’s company just five minutes ago. I believe they’ll call you soon.”

Kouyou eased his eyes shut and sighed deeply. “Fine. Just go, okay? It’s eight in the morning and I can’t even catch a break.”

Akira left promptly, but not before winking in Yuu’s direction – which the raven caught with a blush. When the door was tightly shut once more and Yuu and Kouyou were left alone once again, the blond was groaning in annoyance, turning away from the raven’s view.

“I apologize if I made you uncomfortable in any way. Akira’s always just been a huge asshole. Just pretend you didn’t hear anything.” Kouyou grunted, hand reaching up to tousle at his blond hair. “I’m really sorry. I know we had a huge fight over this whole… boundaries thing, and I definitely do _not_ want to make you uncomfortable again.”

Yuu’s heart fell a bit at the sight of how careful Kouyou was making sure to be when it came to matters of the heart pertaining to the raven. Had Yuu treated Kouyou so harshly over the past week, to the point where the blond was afraid to _even_ let it show that he was too overly concerned about Yuu sometimes? 

“Hey, it’s okay,” Yuu whispered quickly, moving in to close the distance between him and the blond. He wrapped his arms around Kouyou’s neck once more and looked up into his eyes, a soft, comforting smile on his lips. “I’m not mad at all. I… I think it’s cute, actually, what Akira said. Is it true? Did you go out drinking because of me?”

Kouyou bit his lip, looking rather reluctant to admit it. “I did.”

Yuu’s smile widened. “Was it because you thought I was mad at you?”

Kouyou sucked in a small breath, eyes apprehensively gazing back down into Yuu’s, still afraid he would offend Yuu with his answer. “But… you _were_. But, well, it’s okay now, right? We’re okay now. So it doesn’t matter anymore.” 

Yuu grinned in response, shook his head, and then reached his hand up to ruffle through Kouyou’s hair cutely.

“Do you talk about me a lot to Akira?” Yuu sang happily, asking.

Kouyou’s lips formed a small smile at how smug his little raven was looking right now. “Per…haps. A little.” 

“Only a little?” Yuu cocked his head to the side, eyes glinting.

Kouyou chuckled to him, finally catching on to what the raven was doing. Yuu was _teasing_ him. And he liked the attention Kouyou was currently bestowing upon him a lot, as well.

“Well… Perhaps a substantial amount.” The older man admitted cheekily.

“Hmm…” Yuu pretended to evaluate his answer for a moment, before coming to a conclusion. “You must really like me,” the raven teased, saying in a soft whisper, his lips leaning up to bestow gentle kisses against the side of Kouyou’s jaw.

Kouyou’s eyes fluttered down as he basked in Yuu’s kisses. “Of course I do, my little flower,” he murmured, looking fondly down to the raven. “I like you more than anything in the world.”

He then cupped Yuu’s cheek with his fingers, dipping his head down until the both of them were locking lips together once more. Their tongues slipped in hurriedly into each other’s mouths, eagerly relishing in each other’s tastes, and the raven whimpered a small moan as he allowed Kouyou to easily dominate him in the kiss.

Yuu felt utter bliss, surrendering himself passionately to the older man like this.

And he realized then and there that he’d never felt happier kissing anyone else; that he’d never felt happier knowing someone loved him more than anything else; that he’d never felt happier _contemplating_ the idea of loving Kouyou as equally back; and perhaps just giving in and…

“God, I love you,” Yuu thought as he murmured softly against Kouyou’s lips, always wondering how it’d sound like aloud. The man treated him so gently and kind, just like how a real lover would, and Yuu wondered how it’d be like if they had met under different circumstances, and had fallen in love like a normal couple would. Everything would be perfect, and everything would fall into place, and Yuu wouldn’t have to keep fretting over his feelings for him, and Kouyou wouldn’t have to be so guarded and careful in his affection for the raven.

And maybe Yuu could then say all the _I love yous_ in the world without having to worry about the consequences. Except – he hadn’t realized he’d _actually_ said it out loud, until Kouyou froze in the kiss and his eyes snapped wide open, looking back to Yuu incredulously.

And then it felt like time had come to a standstill.

And then Yuu wondered if he’d fucked up.

…If he’d fucked up, _big time_.

“Y…You love me?” Kouyou asked, in disbelief of what he’d just heard, drawing his lips quickly away from Yuu’s mouth. And Yuu would have thought the blond would be frightened off by his forthcoming confession, but the way Kouyou was suddenly looking so hopeful as he gazed back to the raven for a response warmed Yuu’s heart so, _so_ much.

So much so that it confused the raven.

“I…” Yuu’s eyes faltered, his hands starting to tremble nervously. Why did he say _it_? What was he _thinking_? Yuu just wanted to know how it would sound like upon his lips (but then again why did he _even_ want to know that?); he hadn’t even been thinking; he had just been too happy, kissing the older man, feeling loved and– the words had escaped him even before he had processed them properly in his mind…

“I…”

Kouyou snaked his arms around Yuu’s waist and held him closer to him, embracing Yuu with childlike excitement to himself. Yuu had never seen Kouyou look happier; and that very knowledge made a huge twist in Yuu’s gut.

“Say it again,” Kouyou pleaded to the raven, his lips curving into an uncontrollable smile, completely oblivious to the fear in Yuu’s eyes. “Tell me you love me again.”

_Yuu wanted so badly to…_

“It was a mistake,” Yuu rushed to say, shaking his head, his arms quickly pushing Kouyou away. “Kouyou, it… it was a mistake.”

 _…but he didn’t_.

Kouyou’s face instantly paled as he got tossed aside.  “What do you mean? What mistake?”

_Don’t do this to me._

“Take me home,” Yuu hurriedly demanded, turning away, his heart tearing apart bit by bit by the second.

_Not now. Not today._

“N-No!” Kouyou broke into a confused yell, and he was gripping Yuu’s wrists close to him, pulling the raven back into his arms. “I heard it. You can’t pretend you didn’t just say it. You said you loved me. Why won’t you say it again?”

All Yuu could do was choke back on fearful tears, and when it was obvious he was refusing to look back up to the blond, Kouyou’s voice came out in a heartbroken whisper.

“We’re so close,” Kouyou begged, and all Yuu wanted to do was to lean back up and kiss him. “ _So_ close to getting where we want to, Aoi. Please don’t let this moment go away.”

But Yuu didn’t.

“Aoi,” Kouyou pleaded one more time. “I love you too. Tell me you love me back. And we don’t have to do this thing anymore. Tormenting each other when we both know it doesn’t have to be this way. I love you, so let’s make this real. Okay?”

Yuu’s voice came out throaty and hoarse, too many wild thoughts running through his mind for him to articulate his words sensibly.

“Y…You said before… you didn’t think yourself worthy of me. Y…You said…”

“I take it back,” Kouyou rushed to say, and then he was enveloping Yuu back into his arms, kissing the tip of Yuu’s silken raven hair. “I take all of it back.”

“Stop being so indecisive,” Yuu croaked, suppressing his tears.

“I’m sorry,” Kouyou hushed the choked up raven, kissing him over and over again against his hair. “I’m so sorry, beautiful. I love you. And I’ve been wanting to let you know, but you – you got so mad at me on Sunday and I – I just thought you never wanted to be with me, the way I wanted to, and I – I didn’t want to… I never wanted to force you into anything you didn’t want.

But if there’s anything I’ve learnt over the past few days, Aoi, it’s that I’ve fallen in love with you. And you don’t – you don’t _know_ – how mad I am at myself, for landing myself in this state, but you just said you loved me – and all I want to know is that it wasn’t my imagination. That I’m not dreaming. That I’m… I’m not alone in this. I’m not alone in wanting this relationship to be more than what it is, Aoi. Please. Just tell me you love me again.”

Yuu fluttered his eyes close and nestled his head meekly against Kouyou’s chest.

“I think I love you,” Yuu said finally, softly, in a tired voice. “I’m not sure.”

Kouyou cast a longing look to him. “Why aren’t you sure?”

Yuu buried his head deeper. “I’m not sure if this is a good idea.”

Kouyou managed a weak smile. “Aoi, won’t you at least give us a chance?”

Yuu sounded hesitant. “Kouyou, you’re… you’re not even in my league. You’re too good for me. You should be looking for someone else who can give you what you want.”

“But you’re perfect for me,” Kouyou whispered, brushing the raven’s hair softly. “And you’re the one that deserves better than me. But I can’t resist you any longer, I’m sorry.”

Yuu glanced to him with lingering uncertainty. “Could I… Could I have some time to think this over?”

Kouyou bit back all the words he wanted to say. “Yes. Definitely. Of course. I… I guess I’ll just await for a reply, then.”

“Thank you,” Yuu murmured, forcing a smile upon his lips.

Kouyou gazed to him with a yearning look. “Can I at least kiss you for now?”

Yuu nodded his head weakly, tipping his head up slowly, allowing Kouyou to seize his lips once more against his. And they kissed for only a short moment; but the fire that was sent running through Yuu’s body set him ablaze.

And Yuu knew his answer even before he needed to think it over.

 _I love you already_.

And for the first time in this whole sugar-dating business, Yuu had never felt so lost and out of control.

~

“I’ll text you later when I know of my plans for this weekend,” Kouyou murmured, glancing over to the raven worriedly as he drove them both up to the gas station he usually dropped Yuu off at.

The raven had been reluctant to speak the entire car ride, but as Kouyou stopped his car by the gas station, Yuu was suddenly looking over to Kouyou with hesitant eyes, his throat dry as he parted his lips.

“I… I live just up front,” Yuu directed, his words sending Kouyou into shock immediately. “Just… a less than ten minute walk from here. I can… I can give you the directions.”

_Things were starting to change._

Kouyou had to hold back his eagerness as he replied, stepping on the pedal once more. “Okay.”

“Just go straight, then turn left at the curve,” Yuu said softly, heart palpitating _hard_ in his chest as he guided the blond to his home. He didn’t know what he was doing, revealing his address to Kouyou like this, but he figured he’d broken so many rules with Kouyou since so long ago, that breaking another one wouldn’t hurt. “Drive up a little more, and I’ll tell you which block to stop at.”

Kouyou listened attentively, barely masking the smile on his face as he drove according to Yuu’s instructions. The raven was opening yet another part of himself up to him, and Kouyou wondered if this was a sign that their relationship was being taken to another level.

“I live right here,” Yuu murmured, halting Kouyou as he approached a block of apartments. Kouyou made mental note of Yuu’s address, briefly glancing around the surroundings, registering what kind of environment Yuu lived in. It was a relatively safe and protected area, and the apartments situated here were far better than what a usually broke university student would live in. Kouyou wondered if the rent Yuu was paying was cheap, or if Yuu could only afford it because of the high allowances he got from him. Still, Kouyou was relieved to see that Yuu was living in a relatively secure environment. He definitely didn’t want Yuu to get hurt in any way.

“I’ll go now,” Yuu alerted the blond quickly, pushing the car door open.

“Wait – I haven’t paid you yet for yesterday and today,” Kouyou called after the raven, frowning to him. “Hold on, I’ll just get my–”

“You don’t have to,” Yuu said quietly, turning back to meet his eyes with a gentle gaze.

Kouyou held his breath, his heart halting for a moment. “I don’t?” Did that mean something? That Yuu wasn’t seeing him as a mere sugar daddy anymore?

Yuu cast his eyes down, biting his lip.

“No. Not until I make a decision, anyway.”

“But I… I took your time,” Kouyou still protested anyway, heart uneasy at the thought of Yuu losing out like this on their arrangement. He slipped his wallet out of his pocket quickly, pulling out whatever amount of cash he had left in it to give to the raven. “Please take this. I’ll be upset if you don’t.”

Yuu looked to the thick wad of cash in his hands with an exasperated sigh. “Kouyou–”

“I love you, so please just do this for me. Please? For me,” Kouyou placated. Yuu eventually took the cash from Kouyou’s hands with a distraught look, knowing the blond had meant to do just that – guilt him into accepting his payment.

“I’ll text you later,” Yuu promised, his words bringing an instant smile to Kouyou’s face.

“I’ll miss you until I see you again,” Kouyou whispered longingly.

Yuu smiled momentarily to him. “I’ll text you,” he repeated, and then he was leaning in to press a soft kiss against Kouyou’s cheek, easing his eyes close as he did so.

“See you later, beautiful,” Kouyou beamed at his kiss, watching sadly as Yuu slowly pulled away and stepped out of his car.

“See you,” Yuu waved to him, bestowing him one last smile before he turned his back on him.

Kouyou drove away with his heart lifted, knowing that the next time they met, things probably wouldn’t ever be the same again.

~

Yuu had been so caught up in his thoughts on Kouyou, that as he entered his apartment absentmindedly and saw his roommate seated against the sofa in the living room, he’d blankly waved to Yutaka before heading past him to his room, completely oblivious to the fuming brunet on the couch.

“Had a nice night with Kouyou?” Yutaka snapped, and it was only with his harsh tone that Yuu finally broke out of his thoughts; finally paying attention to how crossed Yutaka seemed to be. Yuu also briefly noted the dark eye bags littering the brunet’s eyes, and he wondered if Yutaka had stayed up late again last night studying.

“You’re angry,” Yuu registered mindlessly. “Why are you angry?”

Yutaka’s glare was so ferocious in the next instant Yuu was temporarily stunned.

“You said you would tell me if you were ever staying the night at one of your sugar daddy’s place – and you didn’t. You said you would tell me if you were safe or not by the end of the night – and you didn’t. You said you would tell me if you weren’t coming home – and _you fucking didn’t_.” Yutaka seethed furiously, pausing only for a breather, before continuing his rant in absolute annoyance.

“…And five minutes ago, I looked out of the window, waiting for you to come home, still frightened you’d been raped and thrown into the sea or _something_ , and I see you getting out of a certain Lamborghini, waving goodbye to who I assume is _Kouyou_. You’ve always told me you’ve instilled certain rules into place to protect yourself – one of them being that you _never_ tell your sugar daddies where you stay. So, would you kindly please tell me _why_ Kouyou is the exception this time round?”

Yuu didn’t even know where to start.

“I forgot.” Yuu said numbly, too tired to start an argument with the brunet. “I’m sorry.”

Yutaka looked like he was about to combust into flames at Yuu’s lack of answer.

“You’re sorry. _You’re_ sorry?! That’s _all_ you have to say?! Yuu, I was waiting by this door day and night for you! Is that it?! Do you just treat me like I… I’m just some fucking _dog_ continuously waiting for you to come home like you’re my _owner_?!”

Yuu released a long sigh at his outburst, looking away wearily. He had just gotten home from a whole day of nerve-wrecking emotions and he simply had no energy left to deal with Yutaka’s unwanted concern right now, when all Yuu could think about was how Kouyou’s lips felt like on his skin, and the way his name sounded against Kouyou’s tongue.

“Yutaka, I’m too exhausted for this right now. I just… I just want to retire to my room. Is that okay?”

If Yutaka wasn’t yelling before, Yutaka was _really_ yelling now.

“Was sex with Kouyou _so_ good to the point where you can’t even fucking talk to me anymore?! What the fuck is wrong with you?! Why are you letting your guard down so much around him?! Have you forgotten what he is?! He’s _NOT_ your boyfriend, Yuu!”

Yuu lost it at this point, feeling a raging headache coming on over him.

“YOU’RE NOT MY BOYFRIEND EITHER, YUTAKA!”

The sharp silence that followed his outburst was so painful Yuu wondered if he’d stilled the brunet into shock.

“Why did you tell him where you stayed.” Yutaka asked, his tone of voice significantly lowered this time, his eyes gazing away from the raven. “Has he become your lover, now?”

Yuu could tell from the way he sounded that Yutaka was hurt to the core; but Yuu couldn’t bring himself to apologize to him, when Yuu was feeling so messed up himself. It wasn’t fair. It just wasn’t _fair_. Yuu _shouldn’t_ have to deal with this. Yuu shouldn’t have to deal with all of these.

Yuu didn’t ask for any of these.

“He might be,” Yuu replied in a strained voice. “I don’t know.”

Yutaka stiffened instantly, clearly having never expected that answer. “W…What do you mean by that?”

Yuu turned away, his face conflicted.

“I… I told him I loved him.”

The brunet fell into surprised silence once more. “You… You did?”

“I still don’t know why I did, but yeah,” Yuu said quietly, fluttering his eyes shut. “And he… said he loved me back.”

Yutaka looked absolutely disheartened at his words. “He did?”

“But I told him I needed time, so I…” Yuu sighed. “I’m not sure.”

Yutaka’s voice quivered when he spoke this time round, his tone much more subdued. “But you… you told him you loved him.”

Yuu glanced to him with downcast eyes. “I guess I did.”

And in that moment Yutaka had never looked more heartbroken.

“Yuu, I–” Yutaka’s voice trembled so much Yuu felt an instant confusion. “Yuu, are you sure? Are you… _really_ sure about that?”

Yuu shook his head. “I don’t know, Yutaka. I… I guess this is something I need to figure out on my own. I think I’ll… I’ll just take some time to myself to think it over. I’m sorry for not informing you about the staying over at Kouyou’s place, but it had been a really spontaneous decision, and I hadn’t remembered to tell you. I’m sorry.” 

Yutaka looked too hurt to care anymore. “It’s fine. I hope you can figure it out on your own.”

“Thank you,” Yuu whispered gratefully, turning his back on the brunet as he strode forward to his room.

Yutaka realized then and there Yuu would probably never notice the reason why Yutaka always stayed up late at night studying, when he had always just been waiting for him to come home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> things get a little heavy here. are you team yutaka or team kouyou? ehehehe
> 
> sorry for the laaaate update, i was overseas for almost two weeks for the holidays!
> 
> on a side note, got my tickets for the GazettE's 13th anniversary next year! i'm so excited - March is going to be so fun.
> 
> thank you whoever is still keeping track with this story! i promise updates will get more steady from now on. comments are appreciated! :)


	13. Chapter 13

**_Kouyou:_ ** _Hope you got home safely. Miss you already_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _miss you too_

Yuu had been too dazed to remember he had a class that afternoon, but when he did he figured he’d give it a miss anyway. It wasn’t like Yuu usually missed his classes, and Yuu told himself missing just _one_ class wouldn’t hurt. Yuu spent the rest of his day studying for upcoming tests and working on the little remaining assignments he had, besides checking his phone sporadically whilst waiting for a new message from Kouyou – and being disappointed when there was none.

Yuu knew Kouyou was probably cooped up with work, considering the amount of paperwork he’d seen left on his desk, but Yuu couldn’t help but wonder if Kouyou felt as anxious as he did about the current state of their relationship. Yuu was certain by now that he had developed feelings for the blond, and there was no denying it anymore; not when he’d already confessed it outright to the older man himself.

Yuu still couldn’t figure out what possessed him to say those three words, but Yuu knew they must have come from the heart. He hadn’t… He hadn’t ever felt this way for anyone, in a long, long time; hadn’t felt so happy being in the company of someone else like this; hadn’t felt so safe and secure and content, simply by being held in Kouyou’s strong arms.

Yuu _just_ wasn’t sure if this would last. He wasn’t sure if Kouyou was the type of man who only enjoyed the chase and would get bored of Yuu once he got him, and he wasn’t sure if a high-maintenance man like Kouyou could possibly, actually, _really_ want to get into a relationship with Yuu, without eventually cheating on him with a more befitting partner. Yuu wasn’t sure if they were ready to take their relationship to a higher level yet; and sure, they might be compatible with their current sugar daddy and baby arrangement, but things would definitely change once they got into a proper relationship.

Yuu would start having expectations, and Yuu didn’t ever want to get disappointed. Yuu was too… _young,_ for this sort of heartbreak. Yuu didn’t know if he was emotionally prepared to get into a relationship with an older man, much less a high-ranking CEO of a corporate company, much less someone who was so out of his league. Yuu didn’t ever want to get dumped aside once Kouyou found a new, hotter and younger beau – Yuu never wanted to experience that sort of heartbreak.

Kouyou didn’t even know his real name, for god’s sake. What made Kouyou think he loved Yuu whole-heartedly when Yuu was still keeping so many things from the blond? Yuu hadn’t even confessed to Kouyou that he had been lying about his exclusivity as well – he still had ongoing arrangements with other men, and he knew Kouyou wouldn't take that piece of news very well once the time came for Yuu to tell him. If he were to agree to a relationship with Kouyou, that would mean Yuu would have to stop sugaring on the side, and that meant a vital loss of income. Granted, Kouyou’s current allowances to him were more than enough for him to get by for now, but Yuu didn’t want to _only_ depend on him for a steady income. If Kouyou were to drop him anytime… Yuu would be in deep financial trouble.

And Yuu didn’t like the thought of having to depend on anybody.

 _Ugh_ , this was too frustrating. Why the fuck did Kouyou have to waltz into his life and be so goddamn perfect and cause the poor raven to fall for him?!

As if on cue, Yuu’s phone rang with one new message from the CEO.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Akira keeps snickering in the office whenever he looks at me. I’ve warned him to keep his mouth shut about us, and I trust him, but he’s been such a pain in the ass._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _On another note, I miss you. And I can’t stop smiling whenever I look at my office desk._

Yuu laughed softly to himself as he read Kouyou’s text. Kouyou’s presence always magically made him feel better regardless of the situation.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _Akira seems like such a good friend. how long have you known him? perhaps we could all have lunch together sometime :) i hope your office desk is still usable, don’t want to have ruined it in any way…_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I’ve known Akira since my college days. We started out working in different companies but somehow we crossed paths again in this one. It’s funny because we used to hang out a lot in college, so he’s someone I know I can trust. I’ll consider the lunch idea. Akira will probably tell a hundred and one stories of my college days and let’s just say I don’t want my reputation to be tarnished in front of you._

That was interesting to take note of. If Yuu ever got the chance to see Akira again, the raven would make sure to have the vice-president spill more details about the blond CEO… Kouyou seemed too perfect at times, that Yuu couldn’t even believe Kouyou could have done any wild things in his youth. But Yuu couldn’t imagine Kouyou as a nerd who stayed in just to study, either, when he was so goddamn handsome and _so_ charming. Had he been popular in college or had he been a total social recluse? Yuu would have to find out.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _My office desk is still perfectly intact, babe. I wouldn’t mind if you had wrecked it though… Still wondering how we didn’t, when last night was soo good with you. I can’t stop thinking about you_

Yuu’s heart pounded loudly in his chest at this point whilst reading Kouyou’s message. The blond was such a sweet-talker… How could Yuu ever resist him?

 **_Yuu:_ ** _don’t make me blush… that’s evil. you need to start practicing how to stay less horny and focus on your work, mister! you’re incorrigible… idiot_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _You’re the cutest being on earth, I swear <3 You make me so happy. I really hope you’ll give me a chance to make you happy, too_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I love you_

Yuu tried to no avail to ignore the frantic thumping of his heart as his eyes lay upon that message. There was no way Yuu could refuse him at this rate – he wanted nothing more than to be with Kouyou and kiss him right now. He loved how good Kouyou always made him feel whenever he was around him, he loved how pampered he was under Kouyou’s care, he loved how Kouyou always made Yuu his priority no matter what…

Oh, _god_ , Yuu was so hopelessly in love with him.

Seeing Yuu’s lack of response, Kouyou was quickly sending a third message to the raven in case he had made Yuu uncomfortable in any way.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _You don’t have to give me an answer now, I’ll wait for as long as it takes. I never want to pressure you. You’re precious to me. OK?_

Yuu smiled gratefully to his text.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _OK._

~

Dinner was a chilly affair. Yuu and Yutaka ate their dinner around the kitchen table in silence, although neither of them minded, since the both of them had so much on their minds anyway. After spending a good deal of time reminiscing Kouyou’s touch and sweet kiss against his lips, Yuu glanced over to his brunet roommate, and finally took notice how low-spirited Yutaka looked.

Yuu momentarily wondered why Yutaka looked so downcast and dejected, and for a while the raven deliberated if he should ask after the brunet. Did Yutaka get a bad score on a recent test? Were the late nights of studying finally taking a toll on him? Or was Yutaka still angry because of Yuu’s staying over at Kouyou’s place? Would Yutaka get mad if he dared talk about it?

“Are you okay?” Yuu finally summoned the courage to ask, just as Yutaka scooped up the last remnants of his plate and was finishing his dinner. “Or are you still mad at me for not informing you about last night’s stay over?”

Yutaka’s voice was stone cold when it left him.

“It’s fine.”

Yuu grew anxious at his reply, looking over to the brunet with a worried gaze. Now he was almost _certain_ Yutaka was still mad at him.

“I’m really sorry,” Yuu murmured, giving the brunet a guilty glance. “I have too much on my plate right now, and I… just. I forgot. I know lately I’ve been worrying you a lot, but I’m not doing it on purpose, I promise. Next time I’ll definitely–”

“Next time,” Yutaka drawled the words out slowly, grimly, impatiently. “Next time you won’t have to anymore, won’t you? You’ll already be lovers with your rich and handsome CEO. Who, by the way, makes you cum like no one else ever has. _Next time_.”

Great. All previous concern in Yuu disappeared at Yutaka’s accusatory tone – the brunet sounding so bitter it irked the raven slightly. What _exactly_ was Yutaka’s problem? Ever since Yuu had taken up Kouyou as a sugar daddy, it seemed as if his relationship with Yutaka had progressively gotten worse, and Yuu didn’t even understand why. Yutaka had been disapproving of his other sugar daddies before, but this was the first time he had seen Yutaka _so_ adamant against Yuu getting involved with Kouyou – who, by far, was the best sugar daddy Yuu had ever gone out with.

He treated Yuu the best, pampered Yuu the best, and would never harm Yuu in a heartbeat. And here Yutaka was, acting like Kouyou was the world’s vilest murderer on the run.

“Do you have something against Kouyou or something?” Yuu asked, trying to contain his irritation as he spoke. Yuu was beginning to have feelings for the blond, and he didn't like the idea of his roommate – and best friend – speaking ill of Kouyou this way. Kouyou was _perfect_. Yuu was convinced that the only reason Yutaka was so opposed to Kouyou was because the brunet hadn’t met him yet. Kouyou could charm _anyone_ he met to bits.

“Would it make a difference if I said I did?” Yutaka snapped angrily back, and Yuu flinched at the sharp infliction of his tone. “I don’t like how you’re so trusting of him, when you’ve only known him for like, what, a few weeks? He’s so much older than you and he has money, power and has you under his very control, Yuu. Don’t you think it’s fishy how he’s so perfect and how smooth everything is going? I just _know_ he’s bad news.”

Yuu looked to him with an indignant frown. “Kouyou’s _not_ like that! Plus, he’s already told me he’s insecure about this whole relationship thing, too. He’s not… Ugh, you _don’t_ even understand him!”

Yutaka gripped the spoon he had in his hand tightly, trying hard to contain his anger. “I see. And _you_ apparently do. I just hope that when the time comes for him to get tired of you, you won’t get mad at me for saying I told you so.”

Yuu glowered to him. “Are you saying people get tired of me easily? That I’m not good enough for a man like him?”

Yutaka looked away at that mention, refusing to look at Yuu into the eye. “I’m just saying, that perhaps you should stop looking at men’s money when you decide whether to fall in love with them or not–”

“I didn’t ask for this!” Yuu yelled, beyond wounded by Yutaka’s words, as he stood up from his chair, aggravated and shamed to bits. Yutaka was _humiliating_ him for his decision to be a sugar baby again. Yutaka had never said these things to him before, not until recently, when Kouyou came into the whole picture. So why was he saying these things now? Why was Kouyou’s very existence making things different?

Yuu stared down to the brunet with an offended look, his voice shaking in both anger and hurt as he spoke. “And I can’t believe you! You _know_ I wouldn’t be doing this if I had a choice. And whether or not I’m falling in love with Kouyou has _nothing_ to do with his goddamn money! I fucking love him to bits because he actually treats me like I’m human, and that’s something I haven’t been treated in a long time! Not even you, Yutaka,” Yuu broke into an annoyed hiss.

“I’m starting to feel like I’m not welcome in this apartment, and I don’t know how to feel about that. If you feel so _bad_ having a roommate like me pay you rent with dirty money that I so _painstakingly_ earned, you can just tell me to leave. I’ll fulfill your wish.”

Yutaka was stunned into silence. He hadn’t expected Yuu to go _there_ , but the very threat of Yuu moving out drew an apology immediately out of him.

“I’m sorry.” He said, quietly, dazedly, picking up the empty plate and cutlery he had in his hand as he got up from his seat. “I’m just worried about you.”

Yuu fluttered his eyes close, tired. It almost seemed as if they were having this same argument every other day now.

“Yutaka, we’ve been fighting way too much lately about this. Is there something else that you’re truly mad at me about? You know I’m willing to listen.”

Yutaka looked down to his plate, his heart crestfallen in his chest.

“No. There isn’t.”

Yuu glanced to him concernedly. “Yutaka, if there’s anything–”

“Kouyou’s a very lucky man,” Yutaka suddenly said abruptly in a low whisper, turning away, his eyes shielded from Yuu’s view. “I just hope he deserves you as much as you deserve him.”

_“You’re special. You’re really, really special. And I’m so jealous. So jealous. So jealous of the man that will eventually marry you one day. He’ll be the luckiest man on earth. I just hope you find someone who deserves you that much.”_

Yuu had heard the exact same words from Kouyou’s lips – back when Kouyou still felt so faraway from him; back when Kouyou still wasn’t sure he deserved Yuu; back when Kouyou still wasn’t sure their relationship could go anywhere; back when Kouyou was still in the midst of falling in love with Yuu, and back when Yuu was still denying his feelings for Kouyou.

But that was him and _Kouyou_. Why was Yutaka telling him the same thing now? If Yutaka was just worried for Yuu’s welfare as his best friend, Yuu could pacify that easily. But if he wasn’t… 

“I know you care for me,” Yuu murmured softly, clearing his thoughts away, sighing. “If you’re so worried about whether Kouyou truly loves me or not, perhaps you could meet him someday. I could arrange that once we… get more settled in our relationship. Then you wouldn’t have to worry as much.”

Yutaka’s gaze lowered at his answer. “I see. Maybe… maybe one day.”

Yuu’s lips formed a smile weakly. “I promise, Yutaka. Things aren’t that bad as they seem.”

Yutaka parted his mouth to reply, but closed them a second later, deciding against it.

“I have to go study,” was all Yutaka left the raven with as he moved to leave, and the air between them had grown so tense that… for some reason, Yuu felt perhaps they would have been better off arguing again, instead.

~

 

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Babe, just looked through my schedule. Can’t see you this weekend… Have to settle a bunch of meetings and see people I don’t want to see. I’m so upset… At least I got to stay with you again last night._

 ** _Kouyou:_ ** _Maybe next week will be a better time. Tell me what you want to do, sweetheart, and I’ll take you out._

Kouyou messaged him around nine later that night with rather disappointing news. Yuu had _literally_ just seen him earlier today, but the few hours they had spent apart already felt like years. Somehow, Yuu felt like the need to see Kouyou and be around him constantly had worsened after finally giving into his feelings and realizing he was, indeed, in love with the blond. Yuu sighed as he replied Kouyou’s texts, not looking forward to spending the upcoming weekend without the blond’s company.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _that’s sad :( miss you. came home and had a little tiff with the roommate_

Yuu had hesitated a bit before deciding to talk about his argument with Yutaka to Kouyou, knowing that the blond would definitely overreact, but he decided that if they were going to take their relationship to a new level, he was going to start off with a clean slate and not hide any further things from the blond.

(There was also the point of telling Kouyou that Yuu hadn’t stopped his arrangements with his other sugar daddies… _yet_ , but Yuu thought that piece of information could wait. For now.)

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Oh no. Did he hurt you again? Tell me if you need me to come over, I’ll be there. I’m not letting anyone hurt you_

Yuu smiled at his reply, having expected his protectiveness already.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _it’s fine… he apologized. i’m worried for him tho… seems like he doesn’t like the idea of us dating very much. he’s been very distant lately, i’m scared this will make us more distant_

This time, Kouyou took a moment to reply – and when he did, Yuu could almost sense the underlying anger hidden in his response. 

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _He doesn’t have a say in what you choose to do with your life, Aoi. Just because he’s your best friend doesn’t mean he gets to decide things for you like this. I don’t have a say in what you do, either. But if he’s trying to guilt trip you into making decisions just to save your friendship with him, then I don’t think he’s a good friend. And I definitely don’t want to lose you just because of him. I won’t let that happen._

Yuu let out a sigh at his answer, realizing he was caught in between his best friend and his soon-to-be lover.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i’m not going to let it happen too, Kouyou, don’t worry. i just… i just wish i knew what he was thinking. he seems so upset lately, i feel like he’s hiding something from me. maybe there’s a bigger problem he doesn’t want to talk to me about_

Especially after what Yutaka said to him today – about Kouyou being lucky to deserve him – which puzzled the raven the most. Yutaka seemed so genuinely conflicted at the idea of Yuu dating Kouyou that Yuu wondered if it was solely concern on Yutaka’s part at this point.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I don’t like the sound of that._

**_Kouyou:_ ** _If you need me to talk to him personally to clear up this mess, I will._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I love you and I don’t want you to be upset. Will you promise me you won’t be too upset over this? I’ll make sure I take you out to somewhere nice on our next date._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _you don’t have to talk to him, it’s fine… don’t want to make things worse. maybe someday we could all have lunch together and he could see you and realize there’s nothing to worry about. you could never hurt me_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _He thinks I’m going to hurt you? Seriously? You mean everything to me. I would die if I ever hurt you._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _:) i know… i love y_

Yuu bit his lip as his fingers unconsciously typed out words the raven was still unsure of saying to the blond yet. He _loved_ the blond, but he would save the _I love you_ s for the next time he saw Kouyou face-to-face again. He wanted that moment to be special – he didn’t want it to be a casual confession over text.

Backspacing his words quickly, Yuu typed up another reply to Kouyou. 

 **_Yuu:_ ** _:) i know… i trust you the most. i’ll try not to let this bother me, i promise!_

**_Kouyou:_ ** _That’s my babydoll._

Yuu laughed softly to himself at the message. They continued texting each other deep into the night, until the raven fell asleep to sweet dreams of his charming blond CEO. 

~ 

Yuu didn’t have much planned for the weekend, so other than having to reply to Kouyou’s morning texts, Yuu found little motivation to get out of his bed and get dressed to _actually_ do things. There were other pending messages from his other sugar daddies, sure, but Yuu was currently putting them on hold seeing he was planning to get serious with Kouyou. He still hadn’t decided how to break the news to his other sugar daddies that he wasn’t available for dates with them anymore, and he was certain they would definitely turn spiteful to him when he informed them so. Yuu was now thankful that he hadn’t given his real address to any one of them – he didn’t need any of them stalking him to his home or potentially causing him physical harm just because he cut them off.

Sighing as he dragged himself sluggishly out of bed, Yuu was stretching his arms up when Yutaka gave a short knock against his bedroom door, signaling he was about to enter. The brunet popped his head inside Yuu’s room and looked significantly better than yesterday, but fatigue was still obvious on his face.

“Had a good sleep?” Yutaka asked, forcing a small smile on his face, and Yuu could tell he was trying his best to be as amicable to the raven as possible. Yuu appreciated the effort – he was taking anything now that things had grown too tense between them.

“It was okay. How was yours?” Yuu questioned, smiling gently to the brunet. Yutaka’s smile broadened at the sight.

“It was fine. I… um,” Yutaka glanced rather shamefully to the ground. “I thought it over last night and realized I must have went overboard. And I… had only been thinking about how I felt about the whole situation, and not how you felt. I… have been completely selfish lately. I’m sorry.”

Yuu’s heart ached slightly at his words. Yutaka sounded so incredibly sincere the raven was too grateful to _even_ continue staying mad at him. At the end of the day, Yutaka was still his best friend after all. And despite his moody outbursts lately, Yuu knew the brunet only had his best interests at heart.

“You know I’ll never get fully mad at you,” Yuu said softly, prancing over to Yutaka’s side. He pulled his roommate into a warm embrace, burying his head against the taller man’s shoulder. “If there’s anything wrong, you have to make sure to tell me, okay? I’ll always be here for you.”

Yutaka raised his arms up around Yuu awkwardly, unsure of how to react.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered again, earning himself another tight squeeze from the raven. Yutaka basked in the hug, easing his eyes shut to savor the fleeting moment.

“Do you have anything to do tonight?” he asked a second later, sounding rather tense and nervous as he did so. Yuu pulled back from the hug and smiled amusedly to him.

“No, I was planning to use the free time I have today to do some chores today, actually,” the raven said. “Do you want to do anything?”

There was clear hesitance in Yutaka’s eyes as he spoke. “Umm… me and my friends won some movie tickets on some uni campus thing– it’s a long story. Anyway, we all got a pair of tickets each, and I don’t really have anyone to bring, soo…”

Yuu laughed when he finally realized what Yutaka was asking him. “Of course I’ll go with you! They’re free tickets, I don’t want to waste them.”

Yutaka looked positively radiant, a stark contrast to how deadbeat he looked minutes ago. “R-Really? Um, it’s kind of a group thing though, so if you’re uncomfortable hanging out with my friends, you don’t really have to–”

“Shush,” Yuu hushed the brunet, shaking his head. “I’m fine with anything. I’m so likeable! Right? Plus, what’s better than hanging out with a bunch of medical students on a Saturday night? I already have a bunch of doctor jokes myself. I’ll fit right in!”

Despite having lived with Yutaka for quite some time, Yuu still felt rather detached from Yutaka’s personal life, and he was glad the brunet was inviting him out on an outing with his friends. Yuu had always wondered what kind of people Yutaka hung out with, and this was the perfect opportunity to do just that.

Yutaka stifled a laugh at Yuu’s enthusiasm. “Yuu, we don’t make… we’re not that… God, we’re not _that_ nerdy,” the brunet chuckled, looking to Yuu endearingly. “Well, the movie starts around six, and we’ll have dinner afterwards. One of my friends will be picking us up around five-thirty, I think.”

“That’s fine with me,” Yuu nodded his head. “I’ll just go and wash up now. Have you made breakfast?”

Yutaka smiled. “Yeah. Ready and made for you already, princess.”

“Okay,” Yuu laughed, grinning back to him, and this time it was almost as if the fight yesterday hadn’t _even_ happened.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to update earlier but life got in the way... Have a ton of deadlines this week and so little time to fulfill them.
> 
> Also - re-opened my word document for this story today and realised a good amount of pages have gone missing for some reason. It was horrible. I had to re-write them and it's fine, but... :/ meh.
> 
> So stressed out lately, but I hope you guys like this update! Will update at least once a week no matter what~
> 
> Comments are sooo loved as usual :) thank you


	14. Chapter 14

Though Yuu put up a seemingly confident front, he still felt a tiny bit of anxiousness about what Yutaka’s friends would think of him when they saw him. Were they judgmental? Or were they edgy medical students who jumped at every little thing they saw? Did they know of _anything_ besides their science textbooks? 

…Okay, wait, was Yuu being the one that was too judgmental here? The raven sighed at the thought, deciding to simply stop thinking about it.

Later that evening, he eventually settled on dressing himself up in his usual casual shirt and tight jeans get-up, complete with the mint-colored Yves Saint Lauren scarf Kouyou had gifted him, wrapped tightly around his neck. Yuu wanted to keep a part of Kouyou with him wherever he went, and besides, he needed something nice to cover up the nasty love marks Kouyou had left on his neck, anyway. That man was plain _brutal._  

But just the way he liked it, Yuu smiled at the thought.

As Yuu lined his eyes generously with black eyeliner, he gazed to himself in the mirror, and off-handedly realized this was the _first_ time he was actually prepping himself to go out somewhere with Yutaka. Since Yuu spent his time most days with Yutaka anyways, the brunet had already seen Yuu in every possible shape and form, and the raven never saw a point in making himself look nice in front of the brunet’s presence.

This time, however, it was almost as if it was like… a date. A _date_? Yuu smiled and shook his head briefly at the idea. But he’d already made it clear to Yutaka he was in love with someone else, and today’s movie ‘date’ was only happening because the brunet had just _happened_ to have free movie tickets on hand. Besides, Yutaka was never interested in guys. Or, well, Yuu had never _actually_ seen him dating anyone ever since he moved in, but the raven recalled the brunet talking about an ex-girlfriend once. He doubted Yutaka was treating this as a serious date – it was probably just a little friends gathering.

“Are you ready to go?” Yutaka then asked from outside his bedroom, knocking gently against his bedroom door. Yuu hurried to tidy his hair.

“Coming!” Yuu said, giving himself multiple once-over looks in the mirror to make sure he looked presentable enough before leaving the bathroom.

Once he opened the bedroom door to Yutaka, the raven’s eyes widened when he lay his eyes upon him and realized how… _different_ the brunet looked. Yutaka had somehow managed to conceal his harsh eye bags and slicked his hair back neatly, unlike the messy manner it was usually in due to the many long nights of studying. The brunet was dressed nicely in a dark navy blue buttoned-up shirt, with a brown jacket and khaki pants, and Yutaka looked so charmingly _handsome_ Yuu couldn’t even manage a word out. It was the first time the brunet had bothered to dress up properly (none of that reading glasses he usually wore, accompanied by his fried bed hair and a face so weathered Yutaka looked like he had given up on life) and Yuu found himelf blinking at the hundred and eighty-degree change. Yuu always knew Yutaka was more-than-average looking, but he’d grown so accustomed to seeing Yutaka as his roommate, and a study geek, that he hadn’t – _ever_ – managed to see this attractive side of him.

“You look… great,” were the only words Yuu finally managed to choke out, realizing he hadn’t been the only one to dress up for the occasion. Oh, _great_. Now it _really_ felt like a date. Yuu tugged Kouyou’s scarf closer to him, sighing at the thought.

Yuu felt double the betrayal when he thought about Kouyou working hard at his job on the other end while Yuu was having fun going out to a movie with his – rather – _dashingly_ – handsome – roommate. Kouyou was bound to get jealous when he found out for sure…

“You look amazing, too,” Yutaka said quietly, eyes scanning the raven before him. Yuu instantly felt self-conscious and turned away shyly, hiding his cheeks with the mint scarf. It wasn’t like Yutaka hadn’t ever complimented him before, but this – _this_ time it just felt so… _wrong_.

“It’s almost five-thirty, is your friend here yet?” Yuu asked quickly, trying to change the subject, and hopefully ease the tension between them. He shut the bedroom door behind him and looked up to Yutaka, gesturing for him to take the lead.

“He’s arriving in a minute,” Yutaka said, nodding his head. Yuu followed him as they made their way out of the apartment, before locking it with the house keys Yutaka brought out.

“What’s his name?” Yuu questioned, curious.

“Tora. He’s nice, don’t worry. He’ll probably have picked up Saga, already, though. Saga’s his boyfriend – he’s a Psychology major.” Yutaka explained, just as they took the lift down their block. “Then we’ll meet Shou and Hiroto at the cinema itself, probably.”

Yuu felt slightly intimidated already, hearing their names, but soon Tora’s car was pulling up to where they were waiting below their block, and Yuu found out he had nothing to worry about. As he got into the car and uttered chirpy ‘hello’s to them, he found they were more than reciprocating of his friendliness.

Tora and Saga were definitely _not_ what he expected. Yuu was immediately awestruck by how good-looking the couple was, and he realized he had severely underestimated Yutaka’s friends ( _seriously_ though, medical students cleaned up rather well). Saga was seated in the front passenger seat, right next to Tora, who was driving his silver Toyota. Tora made small talk with Yuu as the raven moved to sit behind him, and while Saga looked shyer and was much quieter than Tora, Saga still made sure to constantly flash the raven reassuring smiles along the car ride, bringing much comfort to the raven.

The conversation drifted back to Tora and Yutaka for the rest of the car journey, which was an arrangement Yuu was perfectly content with. Yutaka made sure the raven was still included, though, and Yuu appreciated the effort. Tora cracked a few jokes about how Yutaka rarely left his apartment to hang out with them in favor of studying instead, to which Yuu agreed whole-heartedly, much to Yutaka’s annoyance. Tora then mentioned briefly Yuu coming along today must have motivated Yutaka to come out, as well, and the brunet was instantly glaring daggers at Tora with his words, effectively shutting Tora up afterwards. Yuu just giggled at the silent exchange and shook his head; he was just glad Yutaka appeared positively better today than other days. Yutaka had been breaking into too many emotional outbursts lately that it’d been straining the friendship between Yuu and him too much, and Yuu hoped today’s little date with him would lighten up things a bit.

After reaching and parking their car at the mall they were supposed to meet at, Yutaka rushed to pull the car door open for Yuu before the raven could, a gentlemanly gesture that Yuu had been stunned to receive from the brunet. Yuu accepted it with a gentle smile, and as Yutaka moved to shut the car door behind them, Yuu found himself watching the brunet in a whole new light with a warm, beating heart. He had always seen Yutaka as the nerdy, sometimes too anxious and edgy roommate, but today Yutaka was acting in ways he hadn’t before. Or maybe he had – and Yuu had always been too busy to notice it. But Yutaka was being _so_ charming, and Yuu couldn’t resist grinning widely at every move he made.

They met up with Yutaka’s other friends, Shou and Hiroto, at the cinema itself, who made friendly exchanges with Yuu once they saw him. Like before with Saga and Tora, they cracked a joke or two about Yutaka being a hermit, which sent Yutaka sighing exasperatedly _again_ and excusing himself from the group to get popcorn and drinks for him and Yuu. Yuu was left to mingle with his friends, and it was a surprise how amiable they were.

“Yutaka always has been talking about his roommate, we just hadn’t ever seen you in person,” Shou said, wryly smiling to the raven. “Happy to meet you, Yuu.”

Yuu’s curiosity was piqued. “Oh? Does he talk about me a lot?”

Hiroto rolled his eyes with a laugh. “Oh, when he isn’t, he’s checking his phone ten times per hour waiting for a message from you or something. He won’t tell us why, but I have a feeling someone likes you a _bit_ too much.”

Yuu frowned at his words, realizing they were misunderstanding Yutaka’s worry. “That’s not it! He’s just doing it because–” _Well_ , Yuu happened to be working in one of the most dangerous professions in the world. He’d always known Yutaka to fret over Yuu whenever he was out on a date with a sugar daddy, but he hadn’t realized Yutaka had been _that_ bothered to the point where his friends had noticed it, as well. Yuu felt his heart tingling at the thought; Yutaka was _really_ a good friend to him.

“Anyway, we’re just glad you came today. It’s nice to see Yutaka out and about with a smile on his face every once in a while. Lately he’s been looking a little more stressed, you know?” Shou interjected.

Yuu nodded simply, turning his head to gaze at the faraway back of Yutaka’s in the distance. “I’m glad to be finally spending more time with him, too.” Because Yuu realized he must have been neglecting the brunet a little too much lately, and perhaps it was having some negative impact on Yutaka and their relationship. Perhaps it was doing some good, coming out here today with him.

And Shou was right; Yutaka was smiling more than ever now, as he made his way back to Yuu and offered him a drink in his hand. Yuu hoped that smile could stay.

~

Yuu and Yutaka were the last to be seated, trailing after the rest as they moved into the cinema, but as they made their way to their designated seats it was with much surprise that they came to a halt right before… a couple seat. Yuu stared to it, dumbfounded, looking to the brunet and wondering if he knew about this beforehand. Yutaka’s other friends were already happily snuggled up in their own couple seats, and Yuu found himself swallowing hard at the sight. It wasn’t like Yuu had a problem with sitting in a couple seat with Yutaka, it was – _just_ – well…

Kouyou…

“Um, I guess they gave us the tickets expecting us to bring our partners,” Yutaka mumbled, his face hot with embarrassment, once he realized Yuu seemed to be uncomfortable with the idea. He awkwardly took a seat to the far right of the couple seat, patting the empty space next to him for Yuu to sit. “Um… I’ll put the popcorn in between us if that makes things less awkward.”

Yuu feigned a smile, seating himself down next to the brunet. “That won’t be necessary! I mean, it’s just a movie. No big deal.” He placed the bucket of popcorn against his lap and scooted closer to the brunet, shaking his head and looking to him warmly.

“Alright then, if you say so…” Yutaka returned a small, sheepish smile back to the raven.

The movie turned out to be a horror one, which was a genre Yuu and Yutaka relished in. They frequently put on horror films back at their own apartment on movie nights to unwind, and so both the brunet and raven delighted in the movie, and munched on their popcorn routinely. Halfway through the movie, however, Yuu turned to look at the rest of the group, and realized Tora and Saga had already immersed themselves in a full make-out session, while Shou was busy covering his eyes, falling limp against his seat as Hiroto patted him endearingly in silent laughter.

“Anything wrong?” Yutaka moved to ask him, noticing Yuu’s focus had shifted to his friends instead. Yuu shook his head, and as his fingers mindlessly moved to grasp more popcorn, he found himself accidentally brushing against Yutaka’s hand in the bucket. Yutaka froze at the contact, and Yuu wondered if he’d made him uneasy in any way.

“Sorry,” Yuu murmured out an apology, hastily pulling his hand away – but then Yutaka was clasping onto his wrist in the next second, holding him for a moment longer, causing the raven to glance up to him in confusion.

“Is there something wrong?” Yuu asked softly, and the way Yutaka was slowly gazing down to him now with that tender and longing look made the raven’s heart flutter a little. _Why was he looking at me like that?_ He looked just like Kouyou whenever Yuu caught the blond staring at him when he thought Yuu wasn’t looking… But Kouyou was in love with Yuu.

Yutaka wasn’t. _Right_?

The brunet bit his lip, then averted his gaze and looked down to the popcorn rather solemnly, alarming Yuu for a second. Yutaka let the breath he’d been holding out into a sorry sigh and let go of Yuu’s wrist, turning his attention back to the big screen.

…What the hell was that all about? Yuu found himself staring to Yutaka with a puzzled look, wondering if he’d just imagined Yutaka gazing to him and clutching at his wrist like he was some goddess descended from the highest heavens, only to ignore him a second later, pretending like nothing ever happened.

It was at this point in time that Yuu felt his phone vibrate with a text message, and the raven was grateful to answer it, needing the distraction. Yuu unconsciously smiled at the sender’s name once he lay eyes upon it – of course it would be the blond CEO again.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Miss you. Second meeting of the day ended earlier than expected. Can I take you out for dinner?_

Yuu grinned excitedly at the invitation, but frowned immediately after when he realized he couldn’t exactly back out on his arrangement with Yutaka. He sighed, disappointed. He would love to meet Kouyou right now, but it was so rare that he was spending quality time with his brunet roommate, and he didn't want to just ditch Yutaka like this – despite how weird things were getting.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _can’t, babe, i’m at the movies… :( i have dinner arrangements later too. so sorry :( i want to see you too_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Oh… Well, it’s my fault for asking you so late anyway. No worries… Next time then._

A second text message came half a minute later.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Movies with who?_

Yuu smiled down at his phone, having expected this reaction earlier on already. He could almost sense Kouyou’s apprehension, wondering whom Yuu was choosing to spend time with instead of him.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _roommate… :) and his friends. he invited me out… it’s nice to be spending time with him, he looks happier today._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I see._

Yuu stared to his last message, taken aback by Kouyou’s response. He hadn’t seen the blond reply to him so coldly before – or, well, he _sounded_ cold – and Yuu wondered if Kouyou was mad at him.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _you’re mad?_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _At?_

Yuu sucked in a nervous breath as he typed out the two letters.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _me._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _No, why would I?_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Just don’t trust your roommate. I think he has designs on you._

Yuu frowned at the message, unsure of how to respond. Why was everyone around him telling him that lately? Yuu was usually so receptive of hints of flirting from men that were interested in him, but Yutaka… Yutaka was his roommate. _Right_? Just his roommate. Yutaka was this anxious, overly concerned medical student who always tried to escape Yuu’s embraces and found Yuu annoying whenever the raven disturbed him whilst he was studying. He was like a brother to Yuu… He was Yuu’s best friend.

“Are you texting Kouyou?” Yutaka suddenly asked in quiet voice, sitting next to him, and Yuu immediately jumped at his question. Did Yutaka see the message Kouyou had sent him? The raven was rushing to hide it before the brunet had an opportunity to take a look.

“Umm…” Yuu quickly slid his phone back into his jeans’ pocket. “Yeah. He, uh, asked me out to dinner. I told him I already had plans.”

Yutaka’s somber face considerably lightened up at his answer. “Really? Oh. That’s too bad, then.”

Yuu forced a smile up to him, slightly wary of how pleased Yutaka seemed. “Yeah. Perhaps another time, I guess.”

Yutaka kept that smile on his face up for the rest of the movie. Yuu looked on uneasily in silence, deliberating over Kouyou’s words over and over again in his head, unable to concentrate fully on the film anymore.

_Just don’t trust your roommate. I think he has designs on you._

Yuu felt his stomach churn at the very thought of that being true. As if he wasn’t having enough relationship drama as he already was… He didn’t need _this_ to happen to him, too. But it couldn’t be true… right?

It _couldn’t_ be true.

And Yuu wouldn’t believe it, _no_ , not yet, not when everything was starting to fall perfectly into place. Yutaka was his best friend, and Yuu would never want to hurt him in such a way like this. He wouldn’t, _couldn’t_ , will himself to believe Yutaka was ever in love with him, until the brunet decided to confess to him himself, and only when that happened – if it ever would – would Yuu decide what to do, then. Besides, Yuu had already made known to Yutaka he was falling in love with the blond CEO, and he was sure Yutaka would respect his decision to do so. So when it all came down to it…

…Kouyou was probably just being overly sensitive as usual. Everything would be _fine_ , Yuu assured himself, clearing his thoughts and trying to immerse himself back into the movie as much as possible.

~

They later settled on eating at a nearby Japanese restaurant for dinner. As they waited for their food, they briefly indulged themselves in a discussion about the movie – though it soon became apparent that no one _actually_ bothered paying any attention to the movie, except for Yutaka and Yuu themselves. Tora and Saga had been too busy making out, whereas Shou spent half the movie cowering in his seat with his eyes closed, whilst Hiroto spent the whole time laughing at him instead of paying attention to the screen.

As the rest gradually fell into silence, only Yuu and Yutaka’s voice could be heard as they chatted animatedly about how great the movie was, and whether it had been better than the last horror movie they had seen just some few weeks ago.

“Definitely not better than The Grudge,” Yuu piped, shaking his head to the brunet seated opposite him. “That’s still an all-time favorite.”

“Oh, definitely, yeah,” Yutaka nodded in agreement, grinning back to his raven roommate. “I think we’ll have to put that movie on again one of these days when we have time. It’s such a great film.”

“ _Right_?” Yuu laughed. Yutaka joined in with some quiet chuckles, and it was only after a moment had passed, that they realized the rest of the group had been watching them with keen eyes all these while, observing the raven and brunet’s interactions with each other in amusement.

Tora was the first to break the silence, his voice accompanied with a wry smile.

“So, you two watch horror movies a lot together, huh?”

Yutaka was quick to answer before the raven had a chance to. The brunet cast a skeptical look to Tora, warning him to back off with all the teasing with his silent glare. “Is there a problem?”

Yuu frowned instantly at his defensive tone. “Yutaka! That’s rude.” When Yutaka replied with a low grunt, Yuu just rolled his eyes and ignored him.

“We do, Tora. We have movie nights every other day when we have the time – it’s my way of getting Yutaka to stop studying and to _actually_ find time to relax.”

Yutaka made a small pout at Yuu’s words, and turned away from Yuu to sulk at the side. Tora broke into an understanding laugh and shook his head, waving it off.

“It’s fine, we’re used to Yutaka being like this, you know. Most times he’s usually more friendly and accommodating, but lately he’s been a little anxious and uptight, and we think it’s because of a certain someone in his life.”

“Ooooh,” Shou and Hiroto chimed in and made an annoying little coo at his words, sending Yutaka rolling his eyes immediately.

“A certain someone in his life?” Yuu asked, confused momentarily. “Does he have a new girlfriend or something?” And if he did, why didn't Yutaka tell him? Yuu thought they trusted each other enough to talk about important details like these.

Yutaka must have sensed his hurt right then and was quickly clearing Tora’s accusation up.

“No,” Yutaka rushed to say, with a soft sigh. “No, I don’t have anyone in my life. Don’t listen to them, Yuu.”

“It’s just,” Saga suddenly spoke up, his gaze gentle as he quietly gave an explanation to Yuu. “You know, we’re always so worried about Yutaka, because he’s always so absorbed in his books and we each have our partners, so it’s hard to take care of him sometimes. We’re just glad that you’re taking care of him, too. Yutaka is an important friend to us.”

Yuu found himself smiling weakly back, Saga’s words stirring up a strange feeling in his heart. He could feel Saga’s genuine care and concern for Yutaka through his words, and he _did_ understand what the man was getting at – about taking care of Yutaka – but the way Saga phrased it had made Yuu feel… as if the bunch of them had been misunderstanding his _true_ relations to the brunet. That they were assuming Yuu was holding a position that was more of a girlfriend, who stayed in to ensure Yutaka was being properly taken of all the time. But that wasn’t _it_. Yuu and Yutaka were _just_ best friends…

…Or was Yuu simply starting to get too overly sensitive himself?

“Of _course_ I’ll take care of Yutaka! He’s always forgetting his meals and whatnot – I need to keep him in check. And in turn, he’s always been a great friend to me. He’s always, you know,” Yuu glanced to Yutaka with a small smile, earning him a smile from the brunet as well. “He’s always checking up on me too, making sure I’m safe, and all. I want to thank you guys, for taking care of him whenever he’s out.”

Yutaka was starting to look amused by all of this.

“I feel like I’m a son being handed over to his new wife, or something,” Yutaka joked with a chuckle, and the rest of his friends echoed with laughter – not noticing the raven had quickly gone silent at his response.

 _Your new wife_? Yuu thought, half bewildered and half annoyed at the insinuation; but as he parted his lips, ready to question Yutaka’s words, the waiters arrived promptly with their food, and the matter was soon forgotten as all of them reached hungrily for their meals.

Their conversations moved on to talking about medical school, and the various events that were coming up for the clubs Yutaka’s friends were in. Yuu sat back most of the time and entertained himself with all their stories, learning more things about Yutaka’s university life than he could have ever imagined. Now that Yuu thought about it, Yutaka rarely talked about his private life with Yuu, and the raven was starting to feel a little left out when he heard of that one time Yutaka had caused an explosion in the lab, _or_ when he was at Saga’s house and made all of them the best French toast they’d ever had.

Yuu was glad Yutaka had invited him out today to share a part of his life with him, though, and he felt his heart squeeze, realizing that this was probably part of Yutaka’s ongoing apology to make up for his fights with Yuu lately. Yuu smiled briefly, knowing Yutaka was never too much of a confrontational person. The raven shivered at the thought of Yutaka and Kouyou ever going head-to-head – there was no way that was ever going to happen. Two people he loved the most in his life were _never_ going to fight each other like that.

“Are you cold?” Yutaka asked, suddenly, breaking Yuu away from his thoughts. Yuu looked up to him, surprised, and shook his head.

“I’m fine,” Yuu smiled, grateful for his concern, but in a second Yutaka was loosening the jacket around himself and pulling it over the raven, much to Yuu’s protest.

“You don’t have to,” Yuu pouted.

“It’s getting a little cold here, they must have turned up the temperature or something,” Yutaka muttered, frowning. “Anyway, I don’t need it. So just keep it on, alright?”

“I don’t need it,” Yuu crinkled his nose up, stubborn. Yutaka just laughed and turned his head back down to his food, ignoring Yuu’s words.

Tora, Saga, Shou and Hiroto watched their exchanges silently from their own seats, much to the brunet and raven’s oblivion.

When they finally finished with dinner and it was time to make payment for their meals, everyone chipped in to pay for their own share of the bill – except for Yuu, who was quickly stopped by Yutaka as he moved to get his wallet.

“I’ll foot the bill for the both of us,” Yutaka said, drawing the cash out of his wallet before Yuu could have the chance to.

Yuu was starting to grow painfully aware of the way his friends were staring at them. And normally he would allow Yutaka to foot the bill if he so wished to, considering they took turns buying each other meals and groceries, but this time – it was just – it was too much of a _date_ for Yuu to feel comfortable with. And his friends – they were already cultivating the wrong idea about them, and Yuu was sure if he allowed Yutaka to pay for his meal it would reinforce the idea so much more that they were more than just friends.

“I brought enough to pay for my own meal,” Yuu objected, obstinate about his decision.

“You can pay for my meal next time, I brought you out this time after all,” Yutaka insisted.

Yuu couldn’t bring himself to argue with his point after that, and he could only watch as Yutaka took out enough cash to cover both of their meals. Yutaka then left the table with Tora to head to the cashier to foot the bill, followed by Shou and Hiroto; and Yuu hadn’t realized Saga had purposefully waited for the rest of them to leave first – before cornering Yuu as he tried to follow, startling the raven as he got up slowly from his seat.

“I know this is the first time we’ve met, and I really hope you don’t mind me saying this to you, but–” Saga started as he stood right in front of Yuu, blocking his exit, looking to Yuu with a grim, serious look. “I can tell Yutaka cares a lot for you, and perhaps you haven’t realised it on your own yet, but… _please_ , whatever you do, just don’t hurt him. Alright?”

Yuu went completely still, stunned by his words.

“I… I care for him,” Yuu blinked up to Saga, thoroughly bewildered by the sudden confrontation. “I do. I do care for him… I would never hurt him.”

And, maybe, in a way, Yuu felt slightly offended by what Saga said. What made Saga think that Yuu was a bad friend? That Yuu would… _hurt_ Yutaka? Yuu would _never_. Yuu probably knew Yutaka better than anyone else did here, and it irked him to think that Yutaka’s other friends thought so lowly of him.

Saga let out an exasperated sigh. “I know you won’t hurt him, Yuu. But sometimes we do things we don’t realize are hurtful to the people we love, for reasons we haven’t figured out yet. And Yutaka’s… Yutaka’s fragile. More fragile than you think. He’s a good person, too. I just… If you don’t reciprocate his feelings, perhaps you should… make it clear to him.”

It was at that point Yuu froze.

And then nervous laughter followed, when Yuu _finally_ understood what this was all about.

“Yutaka is _not_ in love with me,” Yuu quickly cleared up, shaking his head with a smile. “Seriously, you guys have got it all wrong. And I know Yutaka cares a lot for me, but I care a lot for him too, and we’re just best friends, you know? _Really_ , I assure you. Nothing’s going on.”

Saga bit his lip at his remark, turning away with a skeptical expression on his face. “Is that so.”

“Don’t worry,” Yuu smiled broadly to the man before him.

Saga lowered his gaze, frowning. “I see. It’s probably just a misunderstanding, then. I apologize.”

“Oh, no, it’s fine, really. I understand the confusion, Yutaka and I are really close,” Yuu nodded his head, nervously laughing the subject off. “We should leave! I think the others are up ahead already, waiting for us.”

Saga forced a smile to him. “Sure.”

But even then, Yuu was _certain_ Saga still hadn’t been completely convinced by him that there was absolutely nothing going on between him and Yutaka. Because as he made a move to leave, he was almost certain he heard Saga’s voice in a soft murmur behind him –

“ _You’re going to hurt him, Yuu._ ”

– and as Yuu clutched Yutaka’s jacket around him tighter, and tugged Kouyou’s mint scarf higher up around his neck; the raven-haired felt his heart sink slowly in his chest, basking in the comfort both the jacket and the scarf were bringing to him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> trying to write more of yuu x yutaka because poor yutaka deserves more attention! (but please don't fall out of love with kouyou so soon, i promise he'll be back verrry soon!) also-- what's with a ton of you guys starting to tell me you're starting to ship yuu and yutaka more. XD don't forget about koukou too! <3
> 
> yuu is so oblivious it makes me cry, but i adore him anyway.
> 
> comments are love <3


	15. Chapter 15

“Thank you for sending us home,” Yuu gratefully thanked Tora and Saga as the car drove up to Yuu and Yutaka’s apartment block. “I had a great time today, thank you!”

“I’ll see you guys around class,” Yutaka bade his goodbye to his friends as well, earning him small smiles from them.

“See you soon, Yutaka! And, hopefully your gorgeous roommate again, too,” Tora winked, hinting. Yutaka shot him a look, but moved to get out of the car quickly, making sure he was the first to open the door, for Yuu.

After waving their last goodbyes to Tora and Saga, the car pulled out of apartment grounds and made its way out, leaving Yuu and Yutaka standing by the road, finally giving them a moment alone after spending the entire day out with friends.

“So,” Yutaka started casually, placing his hands awkwardly down into his pants’ pockets, suddenly so painfully shy it amused the raven. “That was nice. Right?”

Yuu giggled at the sight of his nervousness. “Right. I’m really glad I got to spend some time with you today. Your friends are, uh, pretty funny to be with, too.” Yuu then remembered Saga’s confrontation and his face instinctively paled a little. “Well, not when they’re, um… Nevermind.”

Yutaka looked perturbed by his answer. “What’s wrong? Wait, I still haven’t asked you why you were held up back there at the restaurant with Saga. Did he say something to you?”

Yuu tried his best to shrug it off with a cheerful smile. “It’s fine! Really. Your friends are just overprotective, that’s all. It’s just, I kinda got the feeling they didn't exactly… I think they misunderstood our relationship.”

Yutaka cursed exasperatedly under his breath, breathing out his words in a sigh. “Ugh, I knew it. I’m sorry, it’s just – they’re always afraid of me being left out, you know, because all of them have partners. And you’re basically the only other person in my life, so when I talk about you, they just get all excited and – _well_. You understand. Right?” The brunet gave a hopeful glance to Yuu.

“Of course!” Yuu rushed to assure, smiling. “I just… I never want to hurt you, too. And if you ever… if you ever have anything to tell me, you should. Okay?”

Yutaka fell silent for a while, and as he gazed down to Yuu so fondly it reminded the raven briefly of the strange moment of how he gazed to him in the movies – Yutaka was breaking into another low sigh, eyes turning distraught as his fingers fell to finger at the mint scarf wrapped around Yuu’s neck.

“Kouyou doesn’t deserve you,” Yutaka said softly, brushing his fingers up Yuu’s scarf, gently against the raven’s jaw. “Why did you choose him?”

Yuu widened his eyes, taken aback by his words. He trembled under Yutaka’s touch, choking out a nervous murmur.

“He’s… He’s a good person, Yutaka. I’ll be fine, I promise.”

“I’m right here for you,” Yutaka uttered in a pained whisper, palming the raven’s cheek, and Yuu didn't fully understand what Yutaka meant _,_ _no,_ nor did he want to deliberate on it –

– but he didn’t have any time to think further on it, not when there was a sudden flash of car headlights on them and the familiar sound of a sports car dangerously curving the corner.

“What's that guy’s problem?” Yutaka hissed at the sound, annoyed by the sudden disruption, wincing as he raised a hand up to shield his eyes from the glaring headlights.

But his face instantly fell once the car door was pushed open, and the very man he’d grown to abhor stepped out of the very car Yuu was so used to getting into.

“Kouyou?” Yuu’s jaw fell open at the sight, wondering what the living _hell_ Kouyou was doing here.

Kouyou was still dressed in his long-sleeved white buttoned up shirt and black pants for work, so Yuu was _pretty_ certain he’d just come from the office, but oh _god_ , the blond-haired man still looked every bit as suave and handsome in his work getup… and his veined arms and ripped body still looked as yummy and delicious as he’d always tasted, Yuu cheekily added as an afterthought.  

Kouyou lips widened into an award-winning smile once his eyes caught sight of Yuu, and he was quickly pulling out another bouquet of red roses from the car – smaller this time round as compared to his other bouquets – but still an amount generous enough for a romantic gesture. Kouyou clutched the bouquet tightly in his hands as he slammed the car door close, before striding up confidently to the raven-haired, looking every bit the gentleman he always was.

“I missed you so much,” were the first things that left Kouyou’s lips as he presented the bouquet of roses to Yuu, completely disregarding Yutaka’s presence as he stood by the side. Kouyou spun Yuu impatiently around to face him fully, and he was proudly smirking when his eyes scanned past the raven and his gaze fell immediately against the mint scarf adorning Yuu’s neck.

“You’re wearing my scarf again, _pretty_ ,” Kouyou said, pride evident in his voice.

(Meanwhile, Yutaka looked horrified knowing that he’d been fingering the scarf Kouyou had gifted Yuu _just_ moments ago.)

The raven’s cheeks turned peach pink as he accepted the bouquet from Kouyou’s hands, heart skipping a quick beat at Kouyou’s sweet gesture. It was so unfair, how much Kouyou had this kind of effect on him. He was just always so charismatic, _so_ romantic, so charming; and here Yuu was, melting so easily underneath his every touch and word.

“Of course I am,” Yuu huffed, pretending to look unaffected as usual, but Kouyou was quickly cupping his cheek up with one hand, his lips bending down to bring Yuu’s ones into a kiss. Yuu gave in _instantly,_ moaning softly as Kouyou brought him into a hungry kiss, clearly having felt as agonized as Yuu did about being away from each other.

Yuu only allowed the kiss to last for a short moment, though, aware that Yutaka was still standing by the side looking on at them, and he didn’t want to make the brunet feel any worse about this whole situation.

“Meet my roommate, Yutaka!” Yuu hurriedly declared in the midst of the kiss, anxiously pulling away from Kouyou’s grasp to introduce him to Yutaka, though Kouyou seemed pretty adamant to pull Yuu back into his arms, having missed the raven-haired too much.

Kouyou chuckled as Yuu sent a glare his way and jumped out of his arms once more, forcing Kouyou to divert his attention to Yutaka, who – if looks could kill – Kouyou was pretty sure he’d long be dead and gone by now, with the kind of heated glare Yutaka was sending currently in his direction.

“Yutaka, this is Kouyou! I’ve been meaning for the both of you to meet for a long time.” Yuu chirped happily, ignoring the current amount of high tension in the air between the two men standing before him. “Umm… Kouyou, say hi to him!”

Kouyou stifled a laugh at Yuu’s attempt to get the both of them to be cordial to each other, and nodded to his words, deciding to go along with Yuu’s wishes. The blond put on the best behavior as possible in front of Yutaka, extending a friendly hand out for the brunet to shake.

“Nice to meet you, Yutaka,” Kouyou greeted with a charming smile.

Yutaka ignored the gesture rather rudely, leaving the blond’s hand hanging before him.

“Hello, Kouyou. It’s late. What are you doing here?”

“Yutaka!” Yuu yelled right away, groaning at his hostility. “Seriously, you need to drop that tough act of yours. It’s not nice!”

“It’s fine,” Kouyou smiled stiffly in response, retracting back his hand, eyes now turning wary as he answered Yutaka. “I was having my dinner nearby, so I thought I would drop by to see Aoi for a short while. I just wanted to see him, that’s all.”

“You _just_ saw him yesterday morning,” Yutaka scoffed, and his blatant annoyance at Kouyou’s presence was crystal clear to both the blond and the raven. “Anyway, it’s getting late. Aoi, are we done?”

Yuu sucked in a breath hesitantly, flickering his eyes up longingly to Kouyou. “Um…”

Kouyou had come all the way here to see him, after all. He couldn’t just leave Kouyou like this after he’d made such an effort to see him; _plus_ , he’d missed the blond so much, and seeing him at the end of such a long, exhausting evening made up for all the pent up confusion Yuu had felt just hours ago.

Still, Yuu was sure Yutaka would _definitely_ get mad if Yuu lingered any longer in Kouyou’s presence, and he wasn’t sure he wanted to get into the same old fight with Yutaka over Kouyou…

“You should go up first,” Kouyou asserted to Yutaka, quickly making the decision for Yuu when he realized the raven-haired was uncomfortable with making the decision himself. Yuu gazed up gratefully to him. “I won’t take long with Aoi, I promise.”

Yutaka frowned at the idea, but complied, knowing he hadn’t any other choice. “Fine. Aoi, I’ll wait for you upstairs, then. Be safe.” There was a tone of concern in his voice, and Kouyou visibly flinched at it, offended that Yutaka would think Kouyou would hurt Yuu in any possible way.

Yuu nodded silently to the brunet, and both the blond and the raven waited in silence as they watched Yutaka make a move on first. It was only after the brunet had disappeared behind the apartment blocks that Yuu heaved a helpless sigh, prompting Kouyou to turn to him with a displeased frown on his face.

“So… I guess we have established the fact that he doesn’t like me. At all.” Kouyou started.

Yuu looked absolutely dejected. That had _not_ gone well at all. Perhaps it would be harder than he thought – to get Yutaka to be agreeable with Kouyou existing in Yuu’s life.

“Yutaka’s just… _so_ edgy today!” Yuu moaned, burying his face into his palms. “It feels like… It feels like he’s only himself when he’s with me. It’s so annoying. He gets so defensive in front of others, but Yutaka’s really… truly, a really nice person deep down. It’s just…”

“You, I know.” Kouyou reassured the raven quickly, showing he understood what he meant, seeing how upset Yuu was getting over Yutaka. “He’s only being like this because he’s jealous, Aoi. I’m here, and you’re with me, and he’s jealous. I get that.”

Yuu glanced up to him with hesitant-looking eyes. _Even_ Kouyou was saying that about Yutaka? It wasn’t like he hadn’t heard enough about it the whole evening already. Perhaps everyone else was right in thinking that. And perhaps Yuu was the only one who was wrong?

Even Saga had pulled him aside to talk to him about it, and… and maybe Yuu was the only one being gullible and naive here.

“Do you _really_ think he likes me in that way, Kouyou? Because earlier on in the day, his friends seemed to be telling me the same thing, and I’m getting kind of worried about it…”

Kouyou raised an eyebrow to Yuu, as if the raven was already stating the obvious.

“I was only guessing it when you were telling me about how he was acting through your texts, but meeting him face-to-face pretty much confirmed it. I’ve figured it all out in less than a minute, Aoi – he hates me, because he’s in love with you. God, how oblivious can you get?”

Instantly offended by the blond’s words, Yuu was turning away with an insulted huff. Kouyou laughed, shaking his head, and he was moving forward to wrap his arms around Yuu once more, embracing him tightly into a hug.

“God, I missed you so much,” Kouyou murmured, leaning his lips against Yuu’s hair, breathing in Yuu’s heavenly scent in a blissful sigh. “I know I shouldn’t have come here tonight to see you, but I just wanted to make sure you were okay. And I know I didn’t have to drop by, but I don’t trust Yutaka around you anymore, and I wanted to make sure you were still in one piece.”

Yuu snorted, bemused. “What, like he’s going to eat me up or something?”

“You never know,” Kouyou chided, pulling away only slightly so he’s able to gaze down into Yuu’s eyes. “Also, I saw you and him in a rather intimate position as I drove up here. What were the both of you doing?”

Yuu frowned immediately at his accusation. “That was _not_ intimate, Kouyou!”

“Right, it looked pretty intimate to me,” Kouyou rolled his eyes as he continued alleging. “He had a hand against your cheek and he was _so_ close to you. If I didn’t know better, I would have thought you guys were going to kiss. I didn’t like seeing you like that with another man very much, Aoi.”

“Oh?” Yuu’s frown instantly turned into a smug smile at his words. “So you got jealous, seeing me like that with someone else.”

Kouyou’s eyes narrowed to him at his teasing tone. “Of course. I’m the _only_ one that’s allowed to hold you like that, and I’m the _only_ one that’s allowed to ever kiss you.”

Yuu then burst into giggles, pleased with his answer, fluttering his eyelashes up to the older man.

“So why do you keep talking, and why aren’t you kissing me now?” Yuu teased, in a playful tone. Kouyou laughed, shaking his head, and then he was leaning over to capture Yuu’s lips up into another kiss, effectively silencing the raven.

They kissed with much vigor, and as Kouyou lowered his arms to Yuu’s hips and locked them in place there, his tongue easily dominated Yuu’s, melting the younger man into a puddle of soft moans and whimpers once more. Yuu hurriedly kissed him back, body achingly moving forward to grind teasingly against Kouyou’s crotch, feeling up the taller man’s gradually hardening boner.

“ _Nnn_ ,” Yuu mewled shamelessly into the kiss, urging the blond’s hands to roam further down the back of his body. Kouyou’s hands eventually trailed down to Yuu’s ass, his hands cupping a firm grip over the raven’s shapely butt, squeezing them in his hold and pushing Yuu further up against him at the same time. Yuu made a loud moan at the feeling of Kouyou’s hands roaming around his ass, and with each delicate squeeze, the raven was making _such_ lewd noises the older man found himself losing control bit by bit.

As the sexual tension grew even worse by the second, with each breath and pant; with each rub and grind; with each swirl of tongue and Yuu’s playful dry humping; Kouyou was quickly pulling away from the kiss after a while, unable to handle how _fucking_ horny Yuu was making him feel.

“Fuck,” Kouyou cursed, panting deeply, taking a step back from the raven, looking _absolutely_ stressed out as he tried to calm his lower body down from all the excitement. “Fuck, I can’t drive home like this, Aoi.”

Yuu’s face was full of blush, his eyes mildly dazed, and he was grinning flirtatiously to the blond, satisfied with what he’d done to the blond, his voice coming out in a seductive whine. “You don’t have to, _Kouyou_ …”

Kouyou hissed at the suggestive response, turning away, though he was still shivering from the aftereffects of Yuu’s voice and touches, and his groin was _still_ aching with its growingneed to take Yuu then and there.

“I promised Yutaka we wouldn’t take long,” Kouyou sighed, annoyed, running his hand up anxiously his hair. “Aoi, I am _not_ –”

“Have you ever had sex in the backseat of your car?” Yuu asked, out of the blue, blinking up to Kouyou rather innocently. He was clearly not paying attention to Kouyou’s words at all, looking doe-eyed straight up to the blond, enjoying just how much he was nerving the older man.

Kouyou gritted his teeth. “Aoi, _no_. We’re not fucking in my car. Not because it would get dirty – even though it will, but that doesn’t matter to me – but I gave Yutaka my word, and I don’t want him to think I’m the type to go back on my words, or not be able to take care of you, or anything like that. Aoi, I–”

“I could just suck you off,” Yuu whispered provocatively, cutting him off.

Kouyou’s groin _very_ evidently twitched at his words. The blond had to take another moment to calm himself (and his erection) down, whilst Yuu looked on smugly, liking just how he could reduce Kouyou to such a state without even having to lift a single finger.

“You’re _so_ going to get it the next time I bring you home,” Kouyou sighed, though this time he couldn’t resist a smile as he looked back to Yuu, finding it beyond adorable how the raven-haired liked to tease him so. “Aoi, just not now. Okay?”

“Okay,” Yuu laughed, and then he was jumping up to Kouyou, planting a quick kiss against the side of his cheek cutely. “You’re such a gentleman, it’s so annoying at times.”

Kouyou beamed under his kiss, unable to control his wide grin.

“I love you,” Kouyou sighed helplessly, circling his arms around Yuu once more, enveloping him into a tight embrace.

Yuu relished underneath all of the attention, snuggling happily up to the blond. “I heart you too.”

Kouyou gave a wry laugh. “Oh? Is that supposed to mean anything, Aoi?”

Yuu cocked his head to the side cutely. “Maybe. You don’t get the L-word yet.”

Another amused laugh slipped out of the blond. “Is that so. And would you please explain to me why, Aoi?”

The raven-haired gazed up to him with a stubborn look. “Well, for one, if you would stop speaking to me as if I were a five-year-old, that would be very much appreciated. Secondly–”

“But you’re always teasing me like _you’re_ five years old,” Kouyou pointed out.

“Well, you wouldn’t exactly want to date a five-year-old, would you?” Yuu replied haughtily. 

Kouyou pretended to require a moment to think it over, his face still in a permanent smile.

“Only if it’s you, sweetheart. I wouldn’t mind dating someone as cute as you.” The blond chuckled, looking adoringly to the raven. “I – in your terms – _heart_ you very very much, Aoi.”

Yuu couldn’t control the blush that overtook his cheeks at his words. “You are _so_ annoying. Anyway, back to what I was saying earlier. So, I’ve decided that you don’t deserve the L-word now. Not yet.”

Kouyou gazed down to him, with a mildly concerned look in his eyes, and a fond, affectionate expression on his face. “Why?”

Yuu tried to shy away from the intensity of his gaze. God, he _hated_ it when Kouyou looked at him like that. It – _just_ – made him so goddamn embarrassed, with how in _love_ Kouyou looked whenever his eyes fell against the raven. Did Kouyou have to look like a goddamn lovesick freak whenever he lay his eyes upon Yuu? He had to stop acting like a goddamn prince charming before Yuu _actually_ started to believe Kouyou was one.

Seriously, Kouyou was _unreal_.

“It’s just not the right time,” Yuu bashfully murmured in reply, averting his gaze. Kouyou laughed, shaking his head at his answer.

“You’re suddenly so shy with me,” Kouyou noted, grinning, lowering his hand to cup at Yuu’s jaw. “Come on, look at me.” He turned Yuu to face him, and his grin only widened when he realized the raven’s face was flushing scarlet red. “Did I make you blush?”

Yuu made a little huff, trying his hardest to will his blush to fade. “No.” It wasn’t working.

“I see,” Kouyou laughed, his heart dashing wildly at the sight of Yuu crumbling to bits just because of _him_. “Well, you probably have to get that checked, then. Your cheeks, I mean. They look like they’re going to explode.”

Yuu folded his arms, scoffing loudly. “You’re mean!”

“No, I’m not,” Kouyou accentuated, smiling. “Not as mean as you when you tease me. You’re the _worst_ , Aoi.”

Yuu pouted to him. “Am I?”

“But that’s why I love you,” Kouyou rushed to say, releasing a soft sigh, squeezing the smaller raven-haired in his hold. “And I’m so happy I can say it to you freely, now. I love you, I love you, I love you. So much.”

An uncontrollable smile spread upon Yuu’s face.

 _I love you so much too,_ Yuu thought, fluttering his eyes close as Kouyou brought his head down to savor his lips gently one last time, just before the blond had to leave.

~

Yuu returned to the apartment in a delirious mood, fingers still caressing his lips over and over again, mouth still tasting Kouyou’s tongue against his. He couldn’t wipe the smile away from his face with every fluttering thought of Kouyou, but soon he was entering the living room and coming into sight with Yutaka again, who was gloomily sitting against the sofa,  and Yuu was brought down back to reality.

“He’s handsome,” Yutaka remarked, as soon as Yuu came in, his voice cold.

Yutaka was probably talking about Kouyou, Yuu thought, swallowing his saliva thickly down his throat. If what Kouyou said was true – as supported by all of Yutaka’s friends – and if Yutaka _really_ harbored feelings for the raven… then it would explain all of their recent fights easily. _And_ it would explain why Yutaka held such sour feelings for the blond; which was a first among all of Yuu’s sugar daddies.

From the very start, Yuu had already known getting involved with Kouyou would be different from all of his other arrangements, and perhaps Yutaka had picked up on that note the same time he did. Perhaps Yutaka had been concerned Kouyou would be different; an _exception_ , and when his fears finally proved to be true – jealousy became the main reason behind all of those recent tantrums of his.

And perhaps Yuu could forgive Yutaka’s emotional outbursts if this turned out to be the reason, but –

– but Yuu never ever wanted to hurt Yutaka like this.

“He is,” Yuu agreed in a quiet voice, gently easing the door shut behind him. Then, sucking in a timid breath, he gathered what courage he had to apologize for earlier on. “Yutaka, I–”                                                          

“I wanted to tell you something, actually,” Yutaka abruptly said, his tone low, his gaze unfocused. And for some reason his form against the sofa suddenly looked so lonesome it shriveled up Yuu’s heart, and washed a thick sense of guilt over the raven.

“W…What is it?” Yuu asked, rather hesitantly, taking careful steps to his brunet roommate. He eased his way to the sofa, and seated himself down nervously next to Yutaka, hoping this wouldn’t lead to the start of another fight between them again.

He flickered his eyes up to meet Yutaka’s, and felt his heart harden at the sight of nothing but exhaustion and regret filling Yutaka’s gaze. There was something horribly wrong with the brunet, and Yuu was determined to find out _what_.

Or maybe Yuu already knew, and was just waiting to hear it from Yutaka’s very lips.

“I was waiting for you to come up,” Yutaka inhaled briskly, saying. “And I was just sitting here, thinking about how happy you looked when he came to see you. And I couldn’t forget it – how you were smiling, blushing, kissing him and letting him hold you. And I just – I think,” Yutaka’s voice grew raspy at this point, his face turning defeated, and Yuu’s heartbeat was racing so quickly at his words that the raven forgot how to breathe.

“I think if he – _he_ – that blond, charming, CEO, who could pass off as a model, and drive a sports car worth a million dollars – if _that_ man makes you happy,” the brunet shut his eyes briefly, his hands by the side curling up into small fists. “Then I guess I’ll have to accept it, you know. I can’t – I can’t keep acting like this. Because I keep telling you that he’s not good for you, that he’s not to be trusted, but I know I’m _not_ you. And you’re right; you’re an adult, you can decide for yourself. I’m not – I’m not supposed to be forcing my opinions down your throat. I just – I just wanted you to be safe, that’s all.”

Yuu should be feeling happy, _relieved_ – even, but there was nothing but the tumultuous falling of his heart.

And Yuu sees it, now. He hadn’t before, but he finally sees it, now. He sees the heartbreak and the dejection and the hurt and the _you didn’t choose me_ s splashed across Yutaka’s face, and suddenly it all makes sense. Because he knows the reasons behind the brunet’s every word, and he knows every inch of how Yutaka feels about all of this. Because it had just been an assumption; but it was all now finally piecing together to form the conclusion Yuu never wanted to face.

And Yuu couldn’t feel any more worse.

“It’s something else,” Yuu asked softly, daringly, gazing tenderly over to Yutaka.

Yutaka couldn’t keep hiding it from him like this. If he harbored feelings for the raven, Yuu wanted to get it out in the open, and he wanted it out _now_. He didn’t want his best friend to have to bury these feelings to himself in torment and hurt, when Yuu could so easily talk it out properly with him.

“Isn’t it? There’s something else you want to tell me.”

Yutaka dipped his head down at that, anxiously running his hands up through his hair, quickly shielding his eyes away from Yuu’s gaze.

“There is something,” Yutaka admitted reluctantly, his voice shaky.

“I just – I _just_ …”

Yuu never wanted to hear it, but he knew he had to.

“You can tell me,” Yuu murmured, coaxing the brunet softly. “You know I’m always here for you.”

“I…” Yutaka’s throat was dry.

The confession hit Yuu harder than he thought it would.

“I just always thought you’d choose me,” the brunet finally managed to blurt out, choking out a sarcastic laugh.

But his laugh meant nothing. Yutaka looked like he was on the verge of tears, and Yuu had never seen him so weak. And it scared him; it frightened Yuu, to see Yutaka like this. Because Yutaka was never been the type to get so emotional, so sentimental, and here he was, utterly broken by the raven before him. Completely wrecked. Wholesomely gone.

And Yuu suddenly didn’t know what to do.

Yutaka forced out another dry laugh. “I _thought_ , you know. Because I know you meet all these men for a living, but it’s all fun and games to you – you said so yourself. And I’m always sitting here, waiting up for you, and I’m the one you come home to after a long day of spending time with people you don’t even want to face, or laughing at jokes that aren’t even funny, and I’m the one that you tell all your problems to, and I’m the one that has always just been… _waiting_.

And I’ve always thought, one day, you know, you’d realize I was right here for you. Because I’m just here… but you’re so far out of reach. And that’s why I’m studying so hard – twice as hard after I’ve known you – to make sure I become successful enough to be like one of those men you want. Rich, wealthy… whatever you want. But then Kouyou came into the picture and…”

Yutaka shut his eyes close, his heartbeat soft in the silence.

“And he’s so perfect, and suddenly I turn around and you’re gone from me. And I lost you, I think. I’ve lost you. And I know maybe it had been wrong, on my part, to assume you’d eventually notice, and return these same feelings I have for you, and maybe I was wrong, to have assumed you would always belong to me.”

The raven swallowed the bitter bile in his throat down hard.

He’d never _known_. He’d never known of Yutaka’s feelings for him, and he’d always passed Yutaka’s concern for him off as camaraderie, and he’d never – he’d never realized that the little things he did, like hugging Yutaka and teasing him and having movie date nights with him – Yuu hadn’t ever realized perhaps he might have been sending Yutaka mixed signals about their whole friendship. And Yuu had always been affectionate, but perhaps it’d confused his brunet roommate, who wasn’t too used to be on the receiving end of such affection.

Yuu hadn’t ever noticed Yutaka’s feelings for him. Because if he had, perhaps he wouldn’t have talked about his sugar daddies so freely to Yutaka; wouldn’t have nitpicked about their measly salaries; wouldn’t have whined so much about so many of these men not meeting up to his standards; when Yutaka had always been pining for Yuu since so long ago. And Yuu hadn’t realized Yutaka had been paying attention to his lamenting; hadn’t realized Yutaka had been silently trying to become the man Yuu would _want_ to go out with; hadn’t realized Yutaka had been so affected by the way Yuu fawned over rich and good-looking men, when Yutaka was just so desperately trying to match up to them so he would _just_ be good enough for Yuu.

Yutaka never said anything. But maybe that was just how he was– the silent, caring, protector in the background, the one that buried his feelings to himself and watched Yuu go. Watched as Yuu woke up everyday to go out with a new man he’d just met, and waited at home as Yuu left and spent time with men that weren’t even worthy of half his time. Spent the time studying so maybe one day he could become the kind of man Yuu would fall in love with, and checked his phone fifty times per hour so he wouldn’t ever lose track of Yuu.

_Because if he so much as looked away for a second, he could lose Yuu in a flash…_

“I’m sorry,” Yuu whispered, and after a long silence he realized it was the only thing he could say. “I’m sorry I didn’t know. And I’m sorry I... I _can’t_ , I can’t re–”

_… And that was exactly what had just happened to him._

“Don’t,” Yutaka rushed to cut him off, his voice full of hurt. “Don’t say it. Don’t tell me you can’t fall in love with me – just _don’t_. It’s fine, I get it. But _please,_ I–”

Yutaka held back a pained sob. “Please, Yuu. Just don’t acknowledge it. I don’t think I can bear it. I really don’t, Yuu, I– I always thought the good guys win, eventually, you know? And I’ve been holding onto this hope for so long, and I _don’t_ want to hear it. I don’t want to hear I’m not good enough for you.”

Yuu’s heart shattered at his words. Yutaka thought he wasn’t good enough? Why would Yutaka assume anything like that? _Yuu_ was the one that wasn't good enough for him. Yuu didn't deserve half the man he was.

“You were never not good enough. You were the best, Yutaka. You – You’re more than enough for me. You always were.”

Yutaka choked out another laugh, shaking his head. “But Kouyou’s better, you see.”

“You’re not Kouyou,” Yuu insisted.

Yutaka smiled sadly to him. “I know. But it doesn’t matter, because he’s the one you’re in love with. And _god_ , I wish I was Kouyou. I wish it more than anything in the world, Yuu. I don’t want his money, and I don’t want his car. I just want you to look at me the same way you look at him. And if – for just one second – you smile and blush at me the way you do for him – I think I wouldn’t ever need anything else from that point forth.

Kouyou’s so lucky, and I’m so, _so_ mad. Because I’d give so _much_ to be him. I’d give so much, I don’t think you could even imagine. But I can’t. And I know I’m not him. And you’ll never love me. No, not when he’s there. Not when he has a Lamborghini and a corporation and he walks like he’s worth a billion dollars. Because he _is_. And I’m not.”

Yuu’s heart tightened further. It hurt knowing he couldn’t deny his love for Kouyou – it hurt knowing it was the _truth_.

“But I’ll never love him the way I love you, Yutaka,” the raven choked out, trying his best to suppress his tears, reaching out his hand to clutch warmly at Yutaka’s one. “And at the end of the day, it’s not about competition, is it? It’s about you, knowing that I’ll always be here for you. No matter what. And it doesn’t matter who I give my heart to, because you’ve always had a part of mine since so long ago. Kouyou can’t step into our picture. There’s already us.”

Yutaka faintly smiled at his words. “I wish that was enough for me, Yuu.”

Yuu sobbed. “You’re enough for me. I’ll never love anyone like you.”

Yutaka eased his eyes shut, smiling softly. He looked resigned, slowly coming to peace with the fact that Yuu had already become Kouyou’s.

“I’m fine, Yuu. I… I’ll get over this, eventually, I think. Because you’re so happy when you’re with him, and that’s all that matters to me. I don’t want to take that away from you. I… I can’t say I like him, exactly, but I’ll try to be nicer to him the next time we meet. But if he ever hurts you, Yuu, you _have_ to tell me. Because a man like that has everything he could possibly have in the world – and if he takes it for granted, he’s not going to get a second chance. And I’ll make sure I’ll protect you. I always have, Yuu. I…”

Yutaka’s voice reduced to a hesitant whisper. “I love you.”

The tears had already started flowing down Yuu’s cheeks long ago.

“I love you too,” Yuu whispered back, leaning forward so as to wrap his arms tightly around his best friend. He sank his head against Yutaka’s shoulder and muffled his sobs quietly as he squeezed Yutaka in the embrace.

“Thank you so much for understanding, Yutaka. And you know what? One day you’re going to find someone so much better than me, and it will all be worth it. And I believe you deserve someone _so_ much better. And when that time comes, I’ll even get jealous myself. Because you’re so great, and I want you to only have the best. You’ll find someone better than me, definitely. I _don’t_ deserve you.”

Yutaka let out a laugh, warmly reciprocating Yuu’s hug. He shut his eyes as he wrapped his arms around Yuu’s back, savoring the sweet moment with a fond smile on his face.

“You’re so perfect,” the brunet whispered, a moment later, his heart pounding quietly against Yuu’s chest. 

And in that moment Yuu wished so desperately he could love Yutaka back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~~i'm foreboding something in this chapter~~ this was an inteeeeense chapter, i'm sooo curious what you guys feel about it. all the feels for kai coming out here .-. but writing that part was so heartbreaking on my end. i really wanted to write out how sometimes in life you expect love to be returned to you the way you so freely gave it out but somehow someway you never voice it out; it never surfaces; and then you turn around and the opportunity's gone. the person's gone. and you've lost it. lost him or her, lost them forever. and it hits you when you least expect it, and you've always assumed the good guys would win eventually.
> 
> they don't.
> 
> i proooomise i will not leave kai like this.
> 
> comments are so loved! a little note, there'll most likely be no updates for the next two weeks or so. i have assignment deadlines, exams and internship things to settle. see you guys in awhile once things have calmed down ♡


	16. Chapter 16

**_Yuu:_ ** _he told me he loved me_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _And?_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _and then i broke his heart._

After the intense confession session they had, both the raven and the brunet returned to their rooms to get some well-deserved rest. The first thing Yuu did after his shower, however, was to text Kouyou, who had already left a couple of concerned messages on his phone.

Yuu crawled into his bed with a heavy heart and a burdened mind, and he wanted nothing more in the world but to snuggle up in Kouyou’s arms right now and bury his face into the blond’s chest. Kouyou’s scent and presence always comforted him so.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _He didn’t get angry?_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _no. he seemed tired. he said i looked so happy being with you and that was the most important thing. he seemed so heartbroken it broke me_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Oh, babe… Do you need me to call you?_

Yuu contemplated the idea of hearing Kouyou’s voice to soothe him to sleep, but decided he was too tired for that. Kouyou probably needed to get some sleep for work tomorrow, anyway. He would feel bad if he kept the blond up at night – not that he thought the blond would mind.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _not really. i just want you to be here so i can fall asleep in your arms_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Babydoll. I promise I’ll come over first thing tomorrow morning if you need me, I love you_

Yuu smiled at Kouyou’s message, his heart skipping at the invitation. The blond always thought of him no matter what he did. But as enticing it sounded, he knew he couldn’t keep imposing on Kouyou like this. He had his own work and responsibilities after all; it would do no good to constantly distract him just for his own selfish means.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _it’s fine, i’m just tired. i know you have work, i’ll see you whenever you can_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I love you so much. I know you had to break his heart, but it’ll all be worth it in the end, I promise. I’ll take care of you. More than enough to reassure him._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _You should give me his number, I’ll talk to him._

Yuu felt hesitant about the whole idea. Yutaka was already so fragile from the recent heartbreak; would it be a good idea for him to come into contact with Kouyou so soon? He didn’t want to cause Yutaka anymore distress than he already had.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _maybe later. i promise i’ll arrange something. not now, OK?_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Of course, babe. Just let me know. I’ll do anything for you._

Yuu let out a happy sigh at the text, then yawned loudly after that, feeling exhaustion overtaking him.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i have to go to sleep. deadbeat. talk to you tomorrow?_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Of course. Good night, beautiful. <3_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _good night, my prince charming_

~

Yuu had been worried he’d have to face an awkward breakfast with Yutaka the morning after, but when he woke up early as per his usual routine and headed to the kitchen for breakfast, he was surprised to find that Yutaka wasn’t already there whipping up a meal. There was a small note left against the dining table, however, written in Yutaka’s scrawny doctor’s handwriting, explaining the reason for his absence.

_Tora ran into some car trouble, so I went down to help him. Sorry I couldn’t make breakfast. Will be back in time for lunch. Text me if anything. - Yutaka_

Yuu didn’t want to admit this, but he secretly felt relieved at the thought of not having to face Yutaka so soon after last night. It still felt surreal, looking back upon Yutaka’s confession to him, and recounting the words Yutaka said to him.

_I’ll make sure I’ll protect you. I always have, Yuu. I love you._

I love you so much too, Yuu thought in his head, uttering a soft sigh. And thinking about it, he had all the reasons in the world to reciprocate Yutaka’s love. Yutaka was _so_ good to him, so endearing, always taking care of him, his one and only best friend… Yutaka seemed like the perfect choice, the lesser of two evils, when it came to choosing the best partner for him. And perhaps, in a parallel universe, they were together.

Just not in this one.

No, not when there was Kouyou, his rich and charming CEO, chivalrous and cocky and sensitive and _so_ thoughtful. And he had arms so strong and thick enough to wrap around Yuu with, sheltering him from anything and everything in the world. Yuu loved the warmth, the feeling of being protected, and most of all, Yuu loved his _scent_. His musky scent that brought an air of familiarity to Yuu, and told him all the words he needed to hear even without saying anything. Kouyou was so, _so_ perfect. And Yutaka… Perhaps, if Kouyou hadn’t come into the picture, Yuu would have eventually ended up with Yutaka.

But Kouyou was here, and…

 _Ugh_! Yuu found himself casting his thoughts away in frustration. He’d already made his choice, and still he was spending his time mulling over whether he’d made the right decision. He was in love with Kouyou, and that was _it_. He might feel bad for Yutaka, yes, but it shouldn’t cloud his decision to be with Kouyou. His heart belonged to Kouyou since so long ago, and that was enough. _Right_? It was enough for the both of them.

Yuu stalked over to the fridge with a frown on his face, deciding to whip up breakfast for himself to clear his mind. Last night had been emotional enough and Yuu didn’t want to confront such feelings any further; things were settled, for now, and he just wanted to make sure Yutaka was okay. Then he could meet Kouyou again, and everything would sink back into the old pattern it was before…

Squinting his eyes as he looked at the empty fridge before him, Yuu sighed when he realized it was almost empty. He had to do some grocery shopping, then. Glancing at the time proved it was almost half past ten, still considerably early in the morning. Yuu decided he had enough time to get some groceries from the grocery store nearby and come back in time to make lunch for him and Yutaka later.

~

Yuu spent a considerable amount of time stocking up food in his shopping basket before standing in line at the queue for the counter at the grocery store, eyes in a dazed stare. He was already missing Kouyou so much, and he’d only just realized a while ago that it was strange the blond hadn’t yet texted him so far. Usually the blond would be sending him a good morning text by now, but perhaps Kouyou had decided to sleep in today; either that or he was cooped up with work. Probably the latter, since Yuu couldn’t ever imagine Kouyou even relaxing for a second. Judging by the way Kouyou was always so tensed up and dedicated to his work, Yuu didn’t doubt Kouyou was a workaholic.

The thought that Yuu was the _only_ one who could relax him and soothe his nerves made the raven smile to himself with ease. Yuu liked knowing he was special, and he briefly wondered if he was the first one for Kouyou to be able to calm him so easily.

Yuu had been so wrapped up in his thoughts he hadn’t realized someone had been calling for him, and he jumped up slightly when he felt a hand against his shoulder.

“Aoi,” the voice called, and Yuu’s guard defenses went up when it registered that the man only knew him by his nickname. It was probably a sugar daddy he’d been ignoring, then, and Yuu was instantly turning his head around with his breath held, nervous he’d have to see any one of them this early in the morning. He didn’t want to have to explain why he’d been ignoring any of their messages face-to-face, and Yuu knew he was screwed if they decided to cause any drama with him in a public place.

…Luckily for him, it didn’t turn out to be a sugar daddy.

“Jesus christ,” Yuu let out a thankful breath when he came into sight with a tall, familiar-looking brunet. “Oh _god_ , you scared me.”

Once he got over the relief of not _actually_ encountering any sugar daddy of his, the shock that he was meeting an acquaintance of Kouyou’s – Akira – started sinking into him. Unlike the suit he’d first seen Akira in, Akira was dressed in a casual buttoned-up shirt and slacks this time, with expensive sunglasses hanging off the front of his shirt; much more comfortable looking clothing than what Yuu had seen him in back at the office.

Though, it was evident from how smart looking Akira was that he upheld a certain class, distinctly separating him from the rest of the normal crowd. The brunet-haired man was holding a shopping basket in his hand himself, stocked with few groceries, and he seemed to have occupied a spot in the line, queuing just behind Yuu for the counter.

“Hello there,” Akira laughed, questioning Yuu’s frightened stance, his sharp, iridescent eyes looking over to the raven with raised eyebrows.

Feeling the older man’s gaze roam over him, Yuu suddenly remembered he wasn’t wearing his usual make-up, and neither did he do his hair properly – he’d rushed out of the house in just shirt and jeans with a plain scarf over his neck – since he hadn’t expected he’d be seeing anyone he knew within this short period of time out. Yuu pursed his lip, immediately feeling naked and bare underneath Akira’s stare. It wasn’t like Yuu had self-esteem low enough to _need_ make-up on a daily basis for him to look good, but he would appreciate it if good-looking men with status actually saw him dressed up… not looking like a hobo living off the streets.

Also, the last time Akira had seen him, the vice-president had just walked in on him and Kouyou, and Yuu had _only_ been clothed in Kouyou’s white shirt then, the thin material barely long enough to cover his thighs; whilst being wrapped around in Kouyou’s warm arms. That was an embarrassing enough image that Yuu didn’t want left etched in Akira’s brain.

“Hi,” Yuu shyly murmured back, head still cluttered with buzzing thoughts. Plus, if Akira was here and not at the office, then did that mean Kouyou had the day off as well? Or was Kouyou nearby? What was Akira even doing here? Shouldn’t he have his private assistant be running around and getting groceries for him instead?

“I didn’t recognize you at first,” Akira started, smiling to the raven. “You look much younger like this. I mean, more your age. When I saw you back at the office, you definitely looked, um, more… _well_. Let’s just say I understand why Kouyou ended up spending the night with you in his office?”

…Wait. Yuu blinked. Hold on for a second. Was Akira – _indirectly_ – flirting with him with that statement? Yuu gawked at him for a moment, confused, but realized he was probably misunderstanding the older man’s words. There was _no_ way Akira would touch him when he knew Yuu was already Kouyou’s.

“Um, I didn’t think I’d be seeing anyone I knew, so yeah,” Yuu replied with a weak smile, gripping his shopping basket closer to himself for comfort. “Is Kouyou around? I mean – did he come with you here, or…?”

 _Ugh_ , barely ten seconds into the conversation and Yuu was already sounding like a petrified kitten. He wasn’t usually so socially awkward, but he didn’t know how to act around men like _these_. He had only spoken to Akira before with the presence of Kouyou next to him, and without Kouyou around him Yuu felt like a lost, intimidated pet. It was strange how after Kouyou entered his life, Yuu was growing so used to having Kouyou’s protection around him… too much for his own good.

Akira seemed to have sensed Yuu’s discomfort as well, and was adamant to ease it.

“No, Kouyou’s not here. If I recall correctly, he has to meet a client for breakfast today. Unlike Kouyou, I _actually_ get my Sundays off, so I run errands whenever I can. Don’t worry, though, Kouyou was speaking to me about trying to find some time off to meet you. I’m pretty sure he’ll find time to see you soon.”

Akira spoke with a soft smile upon his lips to him, his voice gentle, and Yuu found himself gradually loosening up to his considerate tone. It made him feel better knowing that Kouyou talked to Akira about him on a daily basis… Yuu’s heart tugged happily at the thought. It meant that he was as important to Kouyou as the blond was important to him.

“Actually, you know what? It must be fate we met here, or something. If you’re free, we should totally grab some coffee afterwards. My treat,” Akira added, and he must have seen the hesitance in Yuu’s eyes, because he was quickly chuckling and shaking his head, as if finding the idea that he would do anything to Yuu absurd. “I would never do anything of any sort behind Kouyou’s back, don’t worry. If it makes you feel better, you can text him and tell him I’m inviting you out for coffee.”

Yuu’s cheeks turned red, realizing his reluctance to go out with Akira was obvious. Was he offending Akira with his doubtfulness? But still, Yuu had to take precautions…

“It’s not that I’m doubting you or anything! It’s just, um…”

Well, truth be told, Yuu _was_ doubting Akira. Just a little. But the man was being so overly friendly to him – a mere stranger – that Yuu found it just a tad too suspicious. Yuu was used to getting hit on by older men and being asked out on dates so often, that going out with Akira, a perfect fit for a bachelor his age, felt… too wrong and sudden. But Akira was Kouyou’s best friend… and Yuu was likely overthinking things as usual.

“Of course, you’re young and you’re worried, I totally get that,” Akira laughed, understanding the situation. “OK, I’ll text Kouyou, ok? If he says no, we won’t get coffee. I just thought it’d be a nice opportunity to get to know you, after all. Kouyou has been talking nothing but about you the past few weeks – I’m kind of fascinated by what kind of person you are, to have him so obsessed with you suddenly. _Really_ , if you’d known Kouyou since he was just a mere college student, you’d be fascinated, too.”

Yuu gazed up to him with pink tinted cheeks, happy at the sound of his words. “Really?” He always liked knowing more about what his charming blond CEO thought about him.

Akira grinned. “Of course, pretty. Kouyou’s so hopelessly in love with you it’s starting to look even worrisome. Please don’t ruin our company’s CEO, Aoi.”

Yuu let out a delighted laugh. “I’m not sure I have control over that.”

The raven was a little excited though, when he realized that if he got coffee with Akira, he’d be able to hear more about Kouyou’s past. Although he’d known Kouyou for a few weeks now, he still didn’t know completely everything about Kouyou, and he looked forward to knowing more about the blond.

They eventually paid promptly for their groceries at the counter and – despite Yuu’s protests – loaded their groceries back at Akira’s car in a nearby parking lot, with Akira insisting that he would drive Yuu home after they got their coffee. _I live just a few blocks away,_ Yuu had said, but the older man had ignored his protests. _You’re Kouyou’s boyfriend afterall, I can’t possibly let you walk home like this,_ Akira had countered back.

Akira also ended up phoning – a rather disgruntled, Yuu could tell – Kouyou, alerting him of their little coffee date.

“Yo,” Akira had greeted, once the blond over the line picked up. “So, I kind of met your pretty little raven at the grocery store, and I’m taking him out for coffee now. Do you have any objections?”

Yuu laughed at the straightforward manner Akira used to talk to Kouyou with, and it occurred to him that they must be _really_ close for Akira to be so comfortable with him. Yuu watched silently in amusement as he heard Kouyou’s shocked – _what?! –_ over the phone and then – _this is so unfair, why are you even with him?! LISTEN UP, AKIRA, YOU LAY A FINGER ON HIM AND YOU ARE DEAD. also; if you tell him about how I used to be a dork in college, I will end you so don’t you dare –_ Akira abruptly cut the phone call off then, clearly taking Kouyou’s aggravated ranting as a _yes_.

“He’s fine with it, it’s a-OK,” Akira did the hand gesture as he informed the raven, winking reassuringly to him. Yuu just laughed.

They made their way to a small, homely café nearby, and true to Akira’s word, he treated Yuu to coffee and an expensive slice of cake. Yuu was used to having his meals paid for by his sugar daddies, yes; but he knew Akira wasn’t one of them, and the knowledge that he was imposing on Akira so made him uncomfortable a little. He knew Akira had the wealth and finances to do so, though, and he tried to ignore his guilt. Seriously, Yuu didn’t _have_ to sleep with every man that took him out for coffee. It was weird how Yuu’s mind worked sometimes.

“So, I’ve been wondering about this for a while now, but how did you and Kouyou meet?” Akira asked casually, once they were seated down opposite each other comfortably with their food, cupping his hot coffee mug within his fingertips.

Yuu’s eyes widened then, shocked by the question. “He hasn’t told you?”

Now that Yuu thought about it, _of course_ Kouyou wouldn’t say a word, for god’s sake. Kouyou had gone onto a website meant for looking for sugar babies, after all. It would do no good for a CEO to confess that he had been net surfing for someone to splurge his money on, in return for companionship and sex.

“No,” Akira cocked an eyebrow up, sipping from his coffee. “Not really. I broached it before, when he first talked to me about seeing someone new in his life, but he said how you guys met wasn’t any of my concern. I’m not the type to pursue things like these if he doesn’t want to tell, but I thought I’d try my luck with you.”

Yuu diverted his gaze away at his words, clearly reluctant to tell Akira if Kouyou wasn’t so comfortable with letting him know how they met in the first place. He would have to discuss this with Kouyou further, to see how much the blond was willing to allow others to know about their relationship. As far as Yuu was concerned, Kouyou was the one leading the relationship, after all – even if he’d decided to drop his sugar daddy status recently, to become Yuu’s full-time boyfriend. And Yuu definitely didn't want to reveal anything the blond CEO didn’t want to have revealed.

But then –

“You’re not a stripper, are you?” Akira asked nonchalantly.

Yuu almost choked on his coffee right then and there.

“ _What_?!”

What kind of insinuation was _that_?

Akira burst out laughing at his seemingly violent reaction. “I mean, if Kouyou went to a strip club, I’d be surprised. And kind of thankful, actually. That guy really needs to let loose sometimes. I wouldn’t judge you if you were a stripper, though. I mean – not that I think you are, but what’s so secretive about this whole relationship?”

After Yuu had gotten over his initial shock, he found himself folding his arms to the brunet, amused by Akira’s thoughts. Seriously though – Akira wasn’t _that_ far off in his guess. Yuu may not be a stripper, but he _did_ work.... in areas pertaining to sex. And it wasn’t something Yuu was actively proud of, but it was how he got by as a university student, and it was also how he got to know Kouyou.

So maybe, in a way, Yuu _was_ a stripper. He did, uh, strip off his clothes to get together with men whenever they wanted him to, after all, in exchange for cash. Yuu grinned to himself at the thought, feeling newfound confidence surge up inside of him. _Really_ , when you thought about it, Yuu didn’t have anything to be shy about, so it made no sense that he was being so shy around Akira. He was certainly _not_ shy whenever his sugar daddies brought him back to their beds and devoured him whole.

The corners of his mouth quirked up into a wry smile as he gazed over to Akira, his eyes burning with a kind of fiery defiance that he hadn’t ever revealed to Akira before.

“Well, I guess you’ll just have to find out.”

Akira looked to him, surprised by the raven’s sudden challenging tone, as if having never expected that from Yuu so soon. Then he shook his head and laughed, reclining back in his seat.

“How pleasant,” Akira cocked his head to the side. “And what a feisty little raven Kouyou has found. I should be more surprised, but I’m not, weirdly. Considering you’ve turned my dear CEO into a perverted maniac who ravages people in lifts, I’m looking forward to seeing what else you can do.”

Yuu couldn’t help but curl his lips up with a hint of pride. “Are you really that surprised to see Kouyou acting like this? I hadn’t known he was so uptight until recently, actually. Not until he brought me into his office, that was.”

Akira chuckled. “Oh, you’re going to be in for a surprise. Kouyou’s got quite a temper. Especially when it comes to work – he’s always been adamant on getting things done his way. You could call him… _demanding_. But I’ve known him for so long, so I’m used to it. People do get scared of him, though. It’s a wonder how his assistant puts up with him sometimes.”

Yuu’s eyebrows furrowed in contemplation. It _did_ appear that way – Kouyou being a rather difficult and taxing person to work with – but Kouyou had been nothing but sweet and gentle with him so far. It worried him a little, to think that Kouyou could have two sides to him like this, both so drastically different too; but Yuu hadn’t thought too much of it. After all, a person’s work ethics were different from how they managed their own interpersonal relationships, and if all Kouyou cared about was being good to him, Yuu would take it.

“Then again, he’s been so in love ever since you entered his life,” Akira quickly interrupted, seeing Yuu’s silence and afraid the raven was harboring second thoughts about the blond. “But it’s not like I’m trying to tell you Kouyou’s a bad person or anything. I’ve known him for so long, and I know he’s truly sensitive and a good person underneath. It’s just – you’re just slightly different from the kind of person he usually dates, that’s all. This time round. I just sense it.”

Yuu’s curiosity was piqued. “I’m different,” he said, slightly skeptical. “Really?”

Then again, it was true, if Yuu really thought about it. A person like Kouyou would have dated much better people than Yuu. Yuu was just your normal, average university student, whereas someone in Kouyou’s league would have been wealthy, insanely attractive, and probably would be speaking in the same posh accent Kouyou and Akira did. There was _no_ way Yuu could compare to any one of them.

Akira simply smiled, divulging further. “I should tell you this – he came into work last Monday, sorely frustrated and upset, and it was the worst I’d ever seen him. And he wouldn’t leave the office, and he ripped the paperwork given to him, calling it garbage. And it took me some time, but I eventually got him to come out and bought him a drink or two, before he started talking.

He talked about how this pretty raven-haired he’d just met had these crazy gorgeous eyes, and they wouldn’t leave him even in his sleep. And that he might have accidentally said something wrong or two, and you weren’t responding to his messages anymore. And it made him so, _so_ scared. And he hated feeling so out of control, but he didn’t know what to do. The last thing he wanted to do was lose you, but he’d been trying so hard, and he didn’t know how else to rectify it.

And at that moment I just thought, _wow_. He’s got it so bad for someone he’d just met, and I’d never seen him like this before. And it’s so strange, because–”

Yuu listened to Akira carefully with his breath held, stunned by the inconceivable mental image of Kouyou wrecked beyond words _just_ because of him.

“–because every person he’s dated has been, well, they’ve never made him this way. Sure, they made him upset, and his last break-up really hit him hard, I could tell. But Kouyou has always been the type to bury his feelings to himself, and he has been particularly subdued the past year ever since his partner left him. For a period I always thought he’d marry her, considering she seemed like the ultimate perfect match. She was the daughter of the chairman of an affiliate company, and they’d been introduced to each other at a charity event. Kouyou always seemed happy with her, but towards the end I think their relationship was starting to wear the both of them out.

And then – I had this inkling suspicion that she was starting to get tired of him, tired of the workaholic Kouyou was, tired of how demanding Kouyou was. And she has always been more docile, more giving, and so I’m surprised, by how different you are, Aoi. But Kouyou – I guess he’s trying, now, to be a better man, I can tell. And that’s why I’m just… a tad concerned. I just want to check some things with you and make sure you know what you’re getting into, because I don’t really want Kouyou to… to fall too hard till he can’t recover from it, you understand? I’m concerned.”

Yuu had to pause for a moment to recollect his thoughts, his breath stale.

“I’m sorry, I talk too much,” Akira sheepishly said, smiling nervously to the raven-haired. Yuu just bit his lip, shaking his head, his heart tightening at the knowledge that Kouyou had been so heartbroken on his end all these while.

He’d always known Kouyou to have a fragile side to him, but he didn’t… he didn’t expect _this_. And hearing Akira’s thoughts on him just reinforced the way he felt about Kouyou further. Kouyou was indeed _trying_ , just for him. And that was the hardest thing to do in the world. And Kouyou… Kouyou’s been so selfless, all these while. Yuu couldn’t ever imagine he would ever be demanding with him.

Kouyou’s been so perfect.

“I’ll try…” Yuu sucked in a breath, saying, his voice trembling. “I’ll try not to break his heart, Akira. I promise. It’s just… Last week has been kind of confusing for me, and when he started telling me that he didn’t feel like he was worthy enough for me, but at the same time he started saying things like he didn’t love his ex anymore and how the man to marry me would be so lucky – I just panicked.

I’m not… I’m not used to getting confessed to, like this, I guess. And he was getting attached, and I was afraid of getting attached to a man like him, and… and I didn’t know he got so upset because of that.”

Akira gave a small, comforting smile.

“I’m not blaming you for anything, Aoi. I just wanted to let you know, the man you’re in love with – he’s not perfect, you know? And he gets really angry at work, and he may have expectations sometimes, but it’s going to be okay. And he’s had a couple of bad experiences, but at the end of the day, I think he really just wants someone to sleep next to and someone that’ll make him laugh and feel okay.

He doesn’t want to admit it, but it gets pretty lonely in that office sometimes. And he’s a great boss, sure, but he has spent half of his life running around trying to appease clients and boring dinner dates and sometimes it’s hard, when you have no one to go home to at night. So, the past year, whenever he has gotten mad, I’ve understood him a little. I don’t fault him for his faults, Aoi. I just hope – you know that, you know. You understand that he’s human and he’s trying, and I think – honestly – he’s been the happiest he has ever been in the weeks he has gotten to know you. I just hope you treat him kindly, because he’s such an important person in the company, and such an important friend to me… but at the end of the day, he’s just one person.”

Yuu smiled gently at the thought, heart beating warmly in his chest.

“He’s been nothing but kind to me so far,” the raven sighed dreamily in reply. “I wouldn’t dare think of treating him any otherwise. He just… Kouyou makes me feel like I matter, like nothing else matters, but I do. And he’s always looking out for me, and he’s always telling me if I need him I can always call for him, regardless of whatever he has on. And he’s… He’s just so perfect. It’s the kind of perfection you can’t believe you have, and then you wonder if you’re dreaming. I’m really lucky to have met Kouyou. And I never want to hurt him again.”

Akira chuckled, nodding his head in agreement. “That’s good. That’s a relief to hear, actually. I just… You’re so young,” the brunet admitted, hesitant.

“Considerably young, to me, anyway. And when I was your age, all I cared about was hooking up, and partying, but when you reach my age, you kind of just want to settle down and be content with what you have. I’m just afraid Kouyou and you have different…” Akira seemed reluctant to go on further. “I’ve talked too much, I think. I really should stop.”

“No, I totally get it,” Yuu hurriedly shook his head, reassuring the brunet quickly. “I get your concern too, really. Kouyou must be a very important friend for you to care so much about him.”

Akira smiled briskly to him. “Sort of, I guess. I’ve known him since our college days, after all. He has always been someone I’ve admired, and I’m just glad he’s gotten so far in life, being the person he is. I don’t want any of that to go to waste.”

Yuu’s eyes lit up then, finally realizing he had the opportunity to ask about Kouyou’s college life. “Speaking about that… how was Kouyou like when he was younger? My age, I guess. Did he look the same? I mean – he must have been _so_ popular.”

Akira tried to suppress his laughter. “ _Oh_ , Kouyou is so going to murder me for this. Well, Kouyou has always had that charisma around him, which made him popular among the girls, and occasionally, the guys. So, naturally, he was one of the leaders of our student union. I was friends with a couple of his friends, so that was how we got to know each other. We played soccer together, along with our friends whenever we had the time, though he was usually already pretty busy with his school activities.”

“That doesn’t sound half-bad,” Yuu pouted, realizing there was nothing juicy about this gossip. “Kouyou made it seem as if he was an utter embarrassment in college, or something.”

Akira grinned. “Well, sort of. I mean, in the love department. See, although he was rather fond of wearing glasses back then, he’s obviously the type that looks good no matter what he has on, so evidently he did receive many confessions. He is _so_ uncool, though. Literally. He didn’t ever know what to do whenever someone confessed to him, and he ended up being as flustered as the person confessing to him whenever it happened. And every valentine’s day, it would be the same routine. He’d always end up accepting all of the chocolates given to him, so eventually he learned his lesson and started spending those days hiding in the boys’ changing room, or something.

One valentine’s day I caught him hiding in a corner of the janitor’s closet, looking frightened as hell from the amount of girls running around looking for him. I asked him what the hell he was doing there, and he went all, _I can’t go out, I’m a wanted man. This is even scarier than that dumb game you made me play that had that fucked up jumpscare, man._ and I couldn’t stop laughing at him then. It’s hard to think that the Kouyou now would have been so cowardly ten years ago, huh?”

Yuu almost spluttered out his coffee he’d been drinking, unable to control his wild giggling. “Oh my _god_. I am _so_ going to use that against him the next time I see him.”

Akira attempted to resist his smile. “And he is _so_ going to kill me.”

Yuu laughed. “Seriously, though. I bet he was _so_ sought-after when he was younger, too. And he told me about how he had to work hard to get to where he is today – it’s just… he’s so capable. He’s so smart, and he’s caring, and he’s so… “ The raven stifled a flirty giggle. “He’s so _hot_.”

Akira smirked to the university student before him. “He really is great, isn’t he? You know, I’ve always watched him, even back in college when I was busy playing soccer while he was running around as a student union representative getting things done. And he has always had that sort of quiet charm to him, a silent charisma, but it’s the type where you want to listen to what he has to say, and you want to follow him. He has always known what he has been doing, so–”

The brunet looked wistfully to Yuu. “But lately he has been a little insecure, I can tell. He’s starting to doubt the things he’s capable in, and he’s starting to doubt his very self. As if he doesn’t believe, you know? But then he starts talking to me about you, and then his eyes light up, and he’s smiling softly to himself, and it’s as if the Kouyou I knew from college came back. And Aoi… I just hope you know that. I really wanted you to know that.”

Yuu felt that familiar wrenching of his heart again.

“He loves me,” Yuu asked, though it was more like a statement.

Akira didn’t hesitate to answer. “I think so, yeah. And it’s bad, Aoi, he’s getting it really bad. Kouyou’s not the type to do one-night stands, or hookups, but you should already know that.”

Yuu smiled gratefully, remembering how Kouyou always wrapped his arms closely around him whenever they slept, refusing to let him go.

“I know, Akira. But you don’t have to worry, because I love him too, I truly do. And – and I would never hurt him. Akira, I promise you this. I’ll do my best to make him happy. Thank you so much for telling me all of this. I really appreciate it.”

Akira laughed, waving it off. “I hope you don’t think I’m being nosy, or anything. But… I just have my concerns. And if you feel like you need anything, whether it’s related to Kouyou or not, you can look for me, okay? Hold on for a sec, I’ll give my name card to you.” The brunet was quickly slipping his wallet out of his pants and retrieving a name card, passing it over to the raven. “There. Just call me anytime, if you need me. I won’t hesitate to help – whenever Kouyou is busy, of course. His schedule is always jam-packed, so this is just incase you need someone around and he isn’t there.”

Yuu fingered the card thankfully, eyes lingering over the _Suzuki Akira_ written in bold letters at the top. “Thank you, Akira! This is really nice of you.”

Akira smiled. “It’s my pleasure, pretty. I really enjoyed getting to know you.”

As Yuu parted his lips to reply, he was suddenly interrupted by the surprised call of his name from a distance.

“Yuu?!”

 _Fuck_. Did everyone he practically knew in the universe have to meet him right here on this goddamn Sunday morning? Yuu took a moment to respond to that name, unsure if he should or not, considering Akira didn’t know him by any other name except Aoi – but decided he couldn’t back out of it anyway, especially when he heard loud footsteps running to him. Yuu nervously turned his head around, meeting his visibly excited university mate.

“Taka,” Yuu answered, slightly tense, and Akira was instantly staring to him, at first bewildered; but then his face gradually settled down into amusement. Akira was a smart man, he’d connect the dots easily and realize Yuu hadn’t given out his real name to Kouyou. _Ugh_ , and just when Yuu had thought he’d convinced Akira he was getting serious with Kouyou. Akira would definitely question him later.

“Hi! Didn’t think I would see you here,” Takanori laughed, eyes swiftly flickering over to Yuu’s companion curiously. His eyes lingered on Akira for a while, mentally assessing the older man _and_ his built arms _and_ his expensively labeled clothes.

Akira seemed to realize Takanori was checking him out, so he folded his arms, leaned back in his chair, and gazed back up to Takanori with an arrogant-looking smile, maintaining straight eye contact with him. Takanori gaped for a moment, barely hiding his embarrassment when he realized he’d been found out; then looked from Akira to Yuu, then from Yuu back to Akira.

“Wait… Am I interrupting something?” Takanori asked, confused by the pair seated before him.

“No!” Yuu widened his eyes, hastily refuting the accusation. “No way! Um, this is just a friend of mine. Akira, meet Takanori, he’s a university friend. Takanori, meet Akira. Uh, he’s the friend of my, um,” Yuu felt hot pink blush creeping into his cheeks. “He’s the friend of my… boyfriend. So, yeah.”

Takanori grinned, thrilled at the newfound knowledge. “Boyfriend! He’s the one you were texting just the other day, right? Wow, I thought you were dating someone on campus, or something. I didn’t know you…”

The shorter man bent over closer to Yuu’s ear and dropped his voice to a low, hushed whisper. “…went for older guys! Seriously, this Akira guy is insanely hot. I didn’t know you knew such attractive men, Yuu.”

“Jesus Christ, Takanori,” Yuu sighed, shaking his head disapprovingly.

Akira looked on, quietly, his face still in a smug smile. Yuu didn’t doubt he heard Takanori’s words.

“I didn’t know you had such an attractive friend, _Yuu_ ,” Akira countered, accentuating Yuu’s real name, his voice slipping back into the posh voice he used back at the office. Yuu rolled his eyes to himself, knowing fully well the older man was doing his best to impress.

Akira’s eyes scanned Takanori with a cocky gaze, clasping his arms haughtily behind his head, intentionally flexing his muscles a little for show, sending Takanori flustering into bits at the impressive sight.

“Really, you should have introduced us earlier, _Yuu_.”

Yuu furrowed his brows to him at how husky his voice was suddenly sounding. Really? Were Takanori and Akira _seriously_ flirting right in front of him right now?

“OK, Akira, I promise I’ll explain the _Yuu_ thing later,” Yuu said with pursed lips, sending an exasperated look to the both of them. “And before the both of you jump at each other’s bones, I just want to remind you that I’m still here.”

Takanori let out nervous laughter, pulling his gaze reluctantly away from Akira, and shyfully back to Yuu. “What are you _talking_ about? I can’t stay long, anyway. I have to meet someone in a while, I was just passing by. Um… fill me in all the details about your boyfriend later. Got to be going now! See you, Yuu.”

He was careful to make eye contact with Akira again, looking up at him through his lashes. “And nice to meet you, Akira.”

Yuu slipped out another sigh and simply nodded, quickly ushering Takanori off. Akira broke into pleased chuckles as he waved at Takanori and watched him go.

Takanori made extra effort to sashay his hips as he walked this time, Yuu noted to himself. The raven mentally resisted the urge to facepalm at the sight.

“Not bad,” Akira clucked his tongue, cocking his eyebrow as he scanned Takanori’s fading figure. “Not bad at all. Man, Kouyou has such great taste in men. I might have to thank him for this.”

“So, I’m guessing you’re probably going to ask me for Taka’s number,” Yuu side-eyed the brunet with his answer. Akira shrugged to him, playing it off coolly with a smile.

“Just for research purposes, heh. But also – _Yuu_? So, why was your friend calling you that? Is that a childhood nickname or what?”

Oh, great. Yuu had hoped that with Takanori’s distraction, the brunet would have forgotten about that. The raven averted his gaze shamefully, realizing it would do no good to lie about his name anyway. Somehow or another, Akira would eventually find out, and when that time came, even more misunderstandings would occur.

“It’s my real name, actually. Aoi’s my alias,” Yuu confessed.

Akira went so silent for a second that Yuu was afraid the older man was doubting him and his honesty, and having second thoughts about him being with Kouyou.

“So… you’re _really_ a stripper,” was all Akira said, after a prolonged moment of silence. “Is that your stripper name?”

…Jesus _Christ_. Was the man still on to that?!

Yuu gave him a long, hard look, wondering if he’d severely overestimated the older man. “No, Akira, I’m not a stripper. But… I’m going to have to ask you not to call me Yuu in front of Kouyou yet, okay? Kouyou… kinda doesn’t know.”

Akira’s lips curved into a frown at that mention. “Eh? I see. I can fulfill your request, of course, but – is there a reason why?”

Yuu let out a helpless sigh. “Actually, no. He has always known me as Aoi, but now that we’ve decided to take things official, it hasn’t crossed my mind to tell him my real name yet. I just… I’ll get round to it as soon as I can, I promise. It’s nothing much.”

Akira gave a low hum of approval. “I see. Well, that’s good to hear. I just hope you’re not hiding any more things from him, Yuu. Kouyou’s all about trust, you know? I don’t think he’d feel good knowing he didn’t know so many things about you.”

Yuu weakly smiled to him, nodding his head. “I’m not hiding anything else, don’t worry! I love Kouyou with my whole heart, I promise. I wouldn’t do anything to hurt him.” 

Akira returned his smile, feeling more assured with his reply.

“Great. Now, in exchange for me keeping this our little secret, you could perhaps give me your attractive friend’s phone number…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologise sincerely for the looong wait for this update! It's been what, 3 weeks? I know I initially said 2 weeks, but I severely underestimated how busy I would get, as well as how much time it would take me to clean this up. I hope no one has forgotten this story!
> 
> To make up for it, here was a relatively long chapter~ and some Reituki! 
> 
> Also, expect another update within 3 days. Till then, I hope you sincerely enjoyed this chapter! I would really appreciate it if you told me how much you liked this, too! ♡
> 
> PS: Happy Valentine's Day to all of y'all who are having V-Day now. Sorry I couldn't make any Valentine's Day special, but have a little awkward young college Kouyou to make up for it.


	17. Chapter 17

**_Kouyou:_ ** _So how was the coffee date with Akira?_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Not a real date, I hope..._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Ugh, I’m so jealous I can kill him. I want to see you…_

After Akira had dropped him back off at his apartment, Yuu spent the remainder of his time whipping up lunch for when Yutaka got back, whilst texting Kouyou at the same time. He couldn’t stop smiling with each new text Kouyou sent in to him, especially now that he knew so much more about his past. Kouyou really was the ultimate gentlemen, _alright_. Yuu hoped he could make Kouyou as happy as the blond made him.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i miss you too! so much. how was the client meeting? Akira told me you had one_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _It went OK. Spent it thinking about you._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Anyway, got exciting news. But also bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?_

Eh? Yuu felt unnecessarily anxious at the sudden question – Kouyou wasn’t usually so secretive. What was Kouyou going to tell him?

 **_Yuu:_ ** _you’re scaring me!!! tell me the bad news first so I can be happy about the good news later_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _OK. So, my schedule’s packed. I can’t see you the next few days, as much as I want to... BUT, my client has invited us to a gala event this Sunday. So this means I HAVE to take you out shopping on Saturday to get us fitted for new clothes. Are you excited?_

Yuu grinned uncontrollably at the message, enjoying how excited Kouyou was acting about all of this. A gala event? You mean, the type where rich people and gorgeous celebrities dressed their best and mingled together over glasses of expensive wine? Yuu had never been to one before, nor had it ever crossed his mind he would _actually_ go to one; but Kouyou had been taking so many of the raven’s ‘first’s since Yuu’d gotten together with him, anyway.

And Yuu was all for trying new and exciting things.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _of course i’m excited!!! But are you sure I’m allowed there? i’m not even, uh, a very important person._

Kouyou’s next reply came swift, quick and succinct.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _You can go as my wife._

The moment Yuu’s phone buzzed with that new message, the raven had taken one look at Kouyou’s words and dropped his phone in utter shock and embarrassment. _Jesus Christ_.

The blond even had the cheek to send a follow-up message.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Haha. I mean, if you want to._

Riiiight. What was with Kouyou acting modest as if he hadn’t already decided that Yuu was going to be his wife since so long ago? Seriously, this man was _infuriating._ Infuriatingly adorable.

Yuu couldn’t help beaming at the message, though, his heart beating warmly in his chest.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _you are soooo annoying! -___-_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _:( Really, babydoll?_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _yesssssss >:p_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I can’t help it. :( So it’s settled. You’re going with me, right?_

Yuu rolled his eyes, smiling irresistibly to himself. Just like Kouyou to be so presumptuous when it came to matters regarding Yuu.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _of course. how can i leave daddy alone -___-_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Aoi. Don’t say such vulgar things._

The university student giggled a little, liking how he’d succeeded in teasing the older man so easily.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _what? ;p gonna punish me or something?_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Oh, god, yes._

Yuu unconsciously clenched his thighs together at the definite answer.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Go out shopping on me on Saturday and then stay over at my apartment. I’ll make you very comfortable._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _hmm… more like you’ll make me sore as fuck instead ;p_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I thought you liked me fucking you hard and rough._

The raven bit his lip, beginning to feel his lower regions throb with every word Kouyou was saying. Was Kouyou challenging him? Was this becoming a game to see who would be the first to give in?

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i love it whenever you slip your hard cock inside of me, daddy… you know how much i need it :3_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Of course you need my cock to put you nicely in place, babydoll. You always need Daddy to pin you down and fuck you roughly to give you what you want._

Fuck. Kouyou always knew exactly what Yuu wanted from him.

Yuu had to pace his breaths a little to resist palming his erection. It was in the middle of the day, for god’s sake. Yuu wasn’t going to touch himself in the kitchen to Kouyou’s sexts while waiting for Yutaka to return for lunch.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i love it when daddy shows me who is in control_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Mmm… I love it when you moan like a whore and let me hear how much you like it._

Fuckfuckfuck _fuck._ Kouyou was such a horny perverted old man, Yuu couldn’t refrain his dirty thoughts; couldn’t stop himself from imagining Kouyou’s strong arms pushing him down and fucking into him ruthlessly like he did so many times before. Kouyou’s cock would be hard and big and leaking, and the older man would be grunting in pleasure with every thrust he gave to the raven, his hands carelessly pulling at Yuu’s hair… _fuck._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _daddyyy. stop teasing meee, i want you here to fuck me so fucking hard now, fuckkkk :(_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Ugh, babydoll, still out settling work. Sad face. I want to touch you all over and kiss you and mark you mine._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _But you can still touch yourself to me and send me pictures… Heh._

Yuu’s face burned hotly at the blond’s suggestion. Seriously, that man and his kinks sometimes….

 **_Yuu:_ ** _daddy’s such a pervert -___-_

Taking kinky photos for Kouyou was something Yuu could deal with, though… Yuu snickered at the very thought of putting that plan into action, already formulating sinful ideas in mind.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _but if you’re free later I can c_

“Yuu! I’m home!”

The very sound of the apartment door pulling open and Yutaka’s voice floating in sent Yuu scrambling to hide his phone, furiously slotting it back into his jeans. Could Yutaka have picked a worse timing to return? At least this fended off the erection, Yuu pouted sorely to himself.

Yuu rushed to finish setting up the table, placing the appropriate cutlery down for lunch, just as Yutaka strode into the kitchen, an apologetic look plastered on his face.

“Have you been waiting for long? I’m sorry I took awhile,” Yutaka said, pressing his lips with a slight frown, his eyes scanning over the made-up table, and the emptied grocery bags lying on the kitchen counter. “Oh, did you go out to get groceries too?”

“I did!” Yuu chirped, unnecessarily fidgety as he pulled away from the table. Yutaka scrutinized him closely, wondering what was up with the raven. “So, uh, I’ll just go get you a plate, okay?”

“That’d be great, thanks,” Yutaka smiled to his roommate, still mildly puzzled by Yuu’s tense behavior. “I’ll just go get changed and come back in a minute.”

“Great!” Yuu said, turning around to reach for the kitchen cupboards.

Yutaka stayed rooted to his spot for a moment longer, however, swallowing tightly as his eyes burned straight into the raven’s back. There was still something else he wanted to affirm with Yuu.

“Um, Yuu?”

“Yeah?” Yuu spun his head around, his dark, moonlit eyes falling back against Yutaka’s face.

And in that moment Yutaka stared to him, forgetting what he’d ever needed to say.

“We’re okay, right?” Yutaka asked a minute later, stumbling over his words in an attempt to recollect himself, chewing his lip anxiously as he waited for an answer.

Yuu laughed at the question, nodded promptly, then flashed the brunet an all too familiar playful smile.

“Of course we are,” Yuu grinned.

Yutaka thought the way how Yuu’s raven hair always fell cutely to the sides as he answered was beautiful.

~

Yuu wanted so badly to talk about his meeting with Akira to Yutaka, but he figured things were still too tense between them to bring up anything related to Kouyou. Yuu didn’t want to make Yutaka uncomfortable with any mention of Kouyou, and so Yuu decided against talking about his relationship with the older blond CEO for now.

He spent the rest of his Sunday reading up on his upcoming lectures, accompanying Yutaka as the medical student went back to studying his thick textbooks, and annoying the brunet with nonsensical questions as they both lounged in the living room. Yuu knew Yutaka appreciated his efforts in trying to get things back to normal as soon as possible between them though. And now that Yuu knew of Yutaka’s feelings for him, the raven was being extra careful in whatever he said to his roommate, just incase he stepped over any unnecessary line or boundary between them.

Sunday passed by quickly in a blur, and soon Yuu was back at the university on a Monday morning, greeted by an enthusiastic-looking Takanori at their first lecture.

“So,” Takanori eagerly dropped his books onto the desk before Yuu, before sliding into the empty seat right next to the raven, leaning forward interestedly with both elbows on the table. “You _have_ to tell me all about this Akira guy. Is he married? Divorced? Attached? I _need_ to know what I’m getting myself into.”

Yuu stifled a laugh at Takanori’s excitement. Oh _boy_. He hadn’t told Kouyou about Akira and Takanori yet, and he sure wondered how the blond would react once he found out about them.

“Well, Akira’s single, I think. He’s the vice-president of my boyfriend’s company, and he’s–”

Takanori’s jaw fell agape at his answer, halting him right then and there. “Wait. Your boyfriend owns a _company_?! What is he, some CEO or something?!”

Yuu could barely hide his grin, repeating Kouyou’s cheeky response to him when Yuu had first asked him that exact same question.

“Well, if you would like to put it that way.”

“I need a moment,” Takanori gasped in shock, slinking his limp body back down against his chair. “How did you even meet _that_ kind of guy? Wait, he’s not fifty years old or something, right?”

Yuu narrowed his eyes at the absurd allegation, casting him an offended look. “No, Taka! He’s in his 30s, and he’s drop-dead gorgeous. He’s very polite and sweet, too. He’s just… Well. _Perfect_.”

Takanori grinned, shaking his head at the sight of Yuu acting so lovestruck. “Look at you! You’re so lovesick. I’ve never seen you this way before. Hey, do you have a picture of your boyfriend?”

Yuu was stunned by the question, only now realizing that he hadn’t taken any photo with the blond before.

“No…” Yuu answered, pressing his lips together. Yuu didn’t have the habit of taking any photos with his sugar daddies, considering half of them had wives or were of a certain prestige and reputation. That usually meant they couldn’t ever have evidence lying around of them sleeping with younger men like Yuu, but now that he and Kouyou had decided to make their relationship official – it made sense that they should start taking some photos together. It’d been such a long time since Yuu did that sort of lovey-dovey couple thing, though. But the thought of doing it with Kouyou wasn’t so bad, and maybe it would even make being away from Kouyou so much more bearable. It was insane, just how much he craved to see Kouyou on a daily basis.

Maybe he could bring this up to Kouyou later.

“Oh, you know what? Just give me his name, I’ll google him,” Takanori mumbled, swiftly pulling out his phone. Yuu eyed him, amused. This could get interesting. Despite being Kouyou’s lover, it had never crossed Yuu’s mind to google him before. He never needed to, anyway, considering Kouyou was always around him and within his fingertips.

“Takashima Kouyou,” Yuu answered proudly, unconsciously smiling as his boyfriend’s name rolled off his lips like a lullaby.

It didn’t take Takanori any longer than five seconds to have searched up Kouyou’s photos, which sent Takanori making several noises of approval immediately.

There were a ton of official pictures taken of Kouyou, showing him at fancy events, looking to be in deep discussion with other equally important-looking businessmen. There were a few professional headshots of him smiling to the camera, as well, looking every bit the same person that Yuu had just kissed and cuddled with just a few days ago. From the cool shade of his light blond hair, to his pale skin, to his brooding, twinkling, eyes, to his pouty, kissable lips; from the way he oozed sexual charisma, to the way he laughed and spoke nothing but formalities when he first introduced himself to Yuu – that man was undeniably _gorgeous_ , and Yuu felt his ego swell as he watched Takanori fawn over still images of his boyfriend, knowing that Yuu got to kiss _that_ person in the flesh.

And _god_ , Kouyou’s arms were so incredibly thick in this photo. And you could see the veins so clearly in that other one…

Takanori turned his head to Yuu quickly, squinting his eyes to the raven. “I _can’t_ believe you didn’t tell me about this guy earlier!”

Yuu looked abashedly away. “It hasn’t been that long since we decided to make things official! I’ve only just recently met Akira, too.”

Takanori huffed, folding his arms, clearly not accepting it as a valid reason. “Seriously, how did you meet Kouyou, though? He doesn’t look like the type of guy you can just randomly pick off the street!”

Takanori’s description drew a humoured smile from the raven. “Of course not! Well…”

Yuu didn’t know if he should stick to keeping his relationship with Kouyou a mystery, or reveal to Takanori that they had met on the… um, Internet. On a sugar dating website. _Okay_ , that sounded too much like a bad idea. Yuu was definitely sticking to his original excuse then. Plus, what if Takanori decided to share that piece of information with Akira? Akira would _so_ tell on him to Kouyou.

“It’s uh, kind of a private thing between us. It’s not really that important, anyway. What matters is that we’ve… found each other, I guess.” Yuu felt his cheeks turn crimson at his unusually sappy answer. What kind of person was Kouyou turning him into? Yuu would neverhave thought of saying something like that just a couple of months ago.

(Yuu blamed Kouyou for everything. Because it was his fault, after all. It was always that old, horny, overly romantic pervert’s fault.)

Takanori waggled his eyebrows. “Oooohh. You’re being so shy when it comes to talking about him! I guess it’s true that love changes you. _Oh_ , I can’t wait for that to happen to me! Wait, I haven’t told you. Okay, so, Akira sent me a text last night, and we started talking, and we found out that we both liked the same music, and then we…”

Yuu spent the rest of the afternoon listening to Takanori go on about Akira, wondering if Kouyou on his end was enduring the exact same thing.

~

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Holy fuck. Aoi, did you get Akira laid or something? He’s incredibly happy today. I’m a little frightened._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _He started singing when he walked into my office today. Then he, very delightedly, told me that he accidentally set his kitchen on fire this morning. Jesus fuck._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _…So, I just tried forcing the truth out of him, and he says he’s texting a friend of yours. Um. An explanation, please?_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Text me back when you see these messages. Miss you, my babydoll._

Yuu grinned once he checked his phone and saw he had four new messages from Kouyou over the span of an hour. It made his day to know that Kouyou was always thinking of him wherever he was and whatever he was doing.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _miss you toooo daddyyy. OK, so, i kinda hooked up a friend of mine at university with akira. they met while i was having coffee with akira. -___- takanori’s been talking to me all day about akira too. also, guess what i did today?!?!_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Amazing. Well, at least Akira can’t complain anymore when I talk to him about you, my little flower. What did you do today? Nothing dangerous, I hope._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _hehehehe i may or may not have googled you. for the first time!!!_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _…I see. How very exciting._

Yuu could audibly hear his boyfriend snorting at his text already. The raven simply giggled.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _So, found anything about me you liked?_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i saw lots of handsome photos of you. but i like you in the flesh better! i get to touch and kiss you and make you hug me. <3_

 **_Kouyou: ‘_ ** _Make’ me hug you? You say that like it’s a bad thing. I love holding you. I want to hold you now, too._

Yuu inadvertently blushed at his text, then crinkled his nose up, typing a reply back irritatedly.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _don’t lie, you also want to do many other horrible things to me!_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Haha... Maybe._

Yuu narrowed his eyes.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _But I also want to cuddle you, too. We don't have to be doing the other “horrible things”. Which, by the way, are not horrible. They’re very pleasurable, especially when it comes to you._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _you’re so annoying!!!!!!!_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _pfft, anyway, i realized today we don’t have photos of us taken. i think that needs to be corrected ASAP._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Hn, you’re right. You mean, like selfies?_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _yes! we need to take cute photos of us togetherrrr daddyyyy. :) <3_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I like that idea. Let’s do it._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Does that mean you’ll be taking many other… sorts of… photos for me too?_

Yuu laughed aloud at Kouyou’s message. He was still stuck on that idea, wasn’t he?

 **_Yuu:_ ** _you are seriously the worst. -___-_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _:) Innocent wink._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _go awaaay._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _:( But babydoll._

Yuu spent the next few days nonsensically texting Kouyou like this, counting down anxiously in his heart to the days he would be seeing the blond again.

~

By the time Saturday morning came about, Yuu was _practically_ jumping out of bed, rushing to the bathroom to apply his usual eyeliner and prep his hair nicely, before lugging his small bag of clothes out to the living room to wait for Kouyou’s arrival.

Yutaka watched all of these with a weak smile as he prepared breakfast for the both of them, still trying his best to ignore the glaring hole in his open heart. Yuu would have noticed the brunet’s frail attempt at masking his dejection, had the raven not been so caught up in his happy thoughts of seeing Kouyou again. It had been a painful week without Kouyou’s arms around him, and Yuu looked forward to jumping right back into them and mewling for some pampering from the blond.

“Excited, huh,” Yutaka asked, delivering a plate of breakfast to Yuu on the dining table. Yuu fervently nodded his head, smiling gratefully to his roommate as Yutaka sat himself down opposite Yuu with his own plate of breakfast as well.

“You’re up and running about like an overly enthusiastic pet, like you’re finally seeing your owner again,” Yutaka remarked, a chuckle upon his lips. Yuu shot him a look. “Well, it’s very cute. I think.” Yutaka wasn’t sure if Yuu would appreciate Yutaka calling him ‘cute’.

“It feels like ten years since I’ve seen him,” Yuu moaned, digging into his breakfast as he spoke. Yutaka watched him endearingly, shaking his head to himself with a smile as the raven started eating messily before him.

“You just saw him last Saturday,” Yutaka replied softly, his voice hushening when he recountered that day’s events. Yuu had chosen Kouyou over him that night, and even though it’d already been a few days now, Yutaka couldn’t deny the fresh heartache still burning in his chest. He tried his best so subdue it, though. It didn’t matter, not anymore, not when Yuu had made his choice so clear.

“I know, and we text everyday, buuuut it’s still painful!” Yuu still pouted.

Yutaka managed a laugh at Yuu’s spoilt whining, eyes fondfully taking in the adorable sight.

_Kouyou was so lucky._

“I’ll go down with you later,” Yutaka said out of a sudden, startling Yuu with his words. “When Kouyou comes to get you, I mean. I have to apologize to him for last Saturday.”

Yuu went silent for a moment, his gaze gradually softening at Yutaka’s words, having never expected Yutaka to do that.

“You would do that?”

“I have to,” Yutaka asserted, his face resolute, his eyes unwavering. “I was rude, and that wasn’t nice. I… I might have a few words to say to him, as well.”

Yuu couldn’t help his lips from broadening into a wide smile, heart swelling up with pride. “I’m sure Kouyou would appreciate that very much, Yutaka! I know I appreciate it very, very much.”

~

Later on, as Kouyou drove his Lamborghini up to their apartment block, Yuu waited with Yutaka by the side of the road, his stomach fluttering with butterflies as he watched his lover smoothly step out of his car. Kouyou was suavely and handsomely dressed as usual, and his stoic face lightened up once his eyes met with Yuu’s, his lips routinely spreading into a pleased smile at the sight of his raven lover.

Yuu didn’t want to seem too overly desperate, but he’d been missing Kouyou too much the past few days to care anymore. He ran up to Kouyou as soon as he got the chance, dumped his bag hurriedly down onto the ground and entrapped the older blond into a tight hug, burying his face deep into Kouyou’s chest. _God_ , Kouyou’s well-built chest always felt so good to snuggle his head against, always felt so strong and sturdy to protect him with.

“Someone’s happy to see me,” Kouyou mused, chuckling as he raised his own arms to squeeze Yuu in his hold.

“That’s just your wishful thinking,” Yuu stubbornly replied, but they both knew it wasn’t true, not when Yuu was hugging Kouyou with such force he was almost crushing the bigger man to bits. Kouyou laughed at his response, then lowered his lips and kissed the tip of Yuu’s raven hair gently, breathing in slowly the raven’s strawberry scent.

“So sweet,” Kouyou softly sighed, fingers moving up to tug at Yuu’s hair. The blond brushed through his younger lover’s hair, playing with the strands, twirling them mindlessly around his fingertips. “So, so pretty. My precious little flower. I’m so happy to see you again.”

Yuu’s cheeks instinctively turned pink at his words, but he shielded his face with his hair and made a gagging noise.

“You’re disgusting,” Yuu heaved, but he was still discreetly smiling to himself.

He soon pulled away from Kouyou’s embrace, however, remembering Yutaka had accompanied him down for a reason, and Yuu’s tone lowered down to more serious levels.

“Yutaka wants to speak to you,” the raven murmured, cocking his head back to the brunet still standing in a distance. Kouyou had a look of surprise on, but didn’t question it further. He simply nodded and allowed Yuu to silently head on into the car first.

Yutaka then took that as a cue to make his way over to the blond. Striding over with his hands in his pockets, his face flooded with guilt, Yutaka stopped right in front of Kouyou, drawing in a long breath, mentally readying himself for a few seconds before he started speaking.

“I need to apologize for last week,” Yutaka admitted, swallowing hard down his throat. “I was unnecessarily rude to you. I didn’t trust you then, and even though I still don’t know you as a person now, but after talking it over with Aoi, I’ve realized that I should make an effort to be civil to you at least. And… well, for that… I am truly sorry.”

Kouyou’s eyes went wide at the apology, but he calmed down visibly after that.

“I see,” the older man said, nodding his head. “I understand, Yutaka. I didn’t take any personal offense, so you don’t have to worry. You’re a good friend of Aoi’s, and I definitely want to be on good terms with you as well, and not only for Aoi’s sake.”

Yutaka looked hesitant to continue further.

“Aoi must also have told you about… about my confession, too, I think.”

Kouyou tightened his lips, unsure where the brunet was heading with this.

“He did.”

“I just wanted to let you know…” Yutaka breathed, fixating his stare firmly unto the blond, his jaw suddenly clenching in determination. “That I understand Aoi must have chosen you for a reason. And I’ve seen how happy he gets when he’s with you, and as much as that upsets me, I know I can’t control his heart. But get this, Takashima Kouyou – if you so much as break his heart, I’ll make sure you won’t _ever_ get a second chance with him. And I don’t care how many cars you have, or how big your house is, or how large a company you own.

Because if you don’t take good care of Aoi, if you don’t treat him like how I would have treated him given I had the chance to do so, then I’ll make sure you’ll regret it, Kouyou. I’ll protect Aoi, like I always have. Aoi deserves everything in the whole wide world, and I hope you understand that.”

Kouyou didn’t need to be given any further explanation. He saw the flames burning in Yutaka’s eyes, and he immediately understood.

He would have said the same things too.

Yutaka wasn’t threatening him, _no_ – Yutaka was pleading with him to understand just how lucky Kouyou was, to have Aoi in his grasp, to have Aoi’s heart intertwined with his. Yutaka was asking him, in his own way, for Kouyou to cherish the heart of the precious raven-haired, the very one person that meant everything to the both of them. And Yutaka was entrusting Aoi to Kouyou with this promise, this faith, because Yutaka hadn’t been offered the opportunity to be able to take care of Aoi himself.

Because Yutaka wasn’t sure if he ever could, if he ever would. And the only way Yutaka could ensure the one person he treasured above all others would be safe and sound was to ensure Kouyou loved Aoi properly, and gave Aoi everything he possibly could to make the raven happy.

“I… I’m placing him under your care,” Yutaka stammered out, closing his eyes shut, plain heartbreak splashed all across his face. Kouyou wondered what Aoi would have to say if he saw Yutaka in this state. “So, _please_ , take care of him for me. And make sure he doesn’t ever cry, alright? Make sure you don’t make him upset. Sometimes Aoi doesn’t like talking about his feelings, and he tends to be guarded, and he has this problem of being afraid to open up.

So, when that happens, I need you to… just be patient. And make sure you sit him down and give him whatever he needs, until you get him to spill his heart out. And then you’d realize just how strong that pretty raven-haired is. Because Aoi’s the happiest person I know, but at the same time his heart is so, _so_ fragile...”

Kouyou was never the type to be at a loss of words; but he found his throat dry as he tried to speak.

“…and all I want to see, is that smile on his face forever,” Yutaka finally finished, opening up his crestfallen eyes to meet Kouyou’s.

Kouyou saw everything Yutaka needed to say with just one gaze.

“I know how you feel,” Kouyou replied, in a quiet voice, a concerned look on his face as he spoke to the brunet. Now he realized why Aoi was so worried about Yutaka – the brunet looked like he harbored some strong feelings for the raven.

“And I don’t want you to worry, Yutaka. Because you can be rest assured that I will protect Aoi with all my might, whether he’s around my presence or not. And you’re absolutely right – the world looks so much brighter when he’s smiling. And I know all about his fragile heart, and I won’t ever let him hide anything from me when he’s with me. I’ll make sure I’ll cherish him, Yutaka.”

Kouyou made sure to add with a soft smile, “I’ll make sure I cherish him enough for you.”

Yutaka looked contented enough after that. _Please do_ , were the words left unsaid in the air.

“I’ll see you around, then,” Yutaka exhaled, knowing there was nothing else left to say between the two of them. He offered a small smile, extending a friendly hand out to the blond. 

“I’ll see you, too,” Kouyou gratefully accepted his handshake, returning his smile warmly.

Yuu watched all of this from his seat in the car, his heart flittering around in happiness as he did so.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the update as promised!
> 
> Will be overseas over the next few days, so I'm not sure if I can update while I'm gone. If I can, though, expect another update then. ☆
> 
> I really adored writing this chapter - especially Yutaka and Kouyou's part. That was really important, I think, to show that Yutaka was growing as a character. After writing what Yutaka had to say, I had to go lie down a little.
> 
> Here's something I've been wanting to do but never got around to it until now - I made a little Spotify playlist [right here](http://open.spotify.com/user/11177336146/playlist/5TTTl4RlQG82pkD7sahP2j) for the songs that constantly inspire me while I'm writing Seeking Arrangement. You don't necessarily have to make an account if you don't have one - they allow you to sign in with FB if you want to.
> 
> The songs are kind of arranged in an order according to how the story progresses, so the first few songs are light / when Kouyou and Yuu are courting. And then it gets dramatic when things start getting pretty serious between them, and right now we've reached the part that should be the song "No One's Here To Sleep" my personal song for Kaoi :~) I think it's pretty cool, so check the playlist out if you want to get into my head more about this whole Seeking Arrangement thing. I'll probably update the playlist as I go along. PS: If you have song reccs you would love to share with me with regards to this fic, please do!
> 
> Comments are sooo appreciated as always. I love reading your thoughts on this fic!


	18. Chapter 18

Once Kouyou got back into the car, Yuu leaned over and ambushed him with a quick kiss against the lips.

“I’m so happy!” Yuu cheered, warm eyes gazing up to Kouyou’s face. “I’m so happy to see you. And I’m so happy to see you being all bros with Yutaka now! That’s the best thing in the world to know.”

Kouyou chuckled slightly in response, then smiled faintly as he admired the raven in front of him for a few brief seconds, before dipping his head down to plant a gentle kiss against Yuu’s cheek. Yuu basked happily in the kiss, making a cute noise as Kouyou kissed him, melting the blond’s heart to bits.

Kouyou was seeing things so much clearer now. Yutaka’s words rang in his head, reminding him of how lucky he was to have Aoi in his possession; when he could have so easily lost Aoi to someone else – like Yutaka – or, if in a weird twist of events, could have never met Aoi in this life. And perhaps he could only be the kind of person to look on, to watch by the sidelines as the perfect match for him – Aoi – got swept away by another, more charming prince. Kouyou’s heart twisted at the very thought of that happening. 

It wasn’t like he never appreciated Aoi from the start – he did, but only now he realized perhaps what he felt was adequate enough was _actually_ not enough. Because god, he loved Aoi so much. More than life itself, more than anyone he’d ever loved. And he found himself questioning himself, wondering if perhaps he hadn’t been showing it _enough_. Perhaps he hadn’t showed Aoi how much the raven-haired meant to him and that was why the raven had been so hesitant on jumping into this relationship with him at first. Was he enough for Aoi? Did Aoi understand his sentiment enough?

Today only reinforced what Kouyou had known previously – that he was _so_ goddamn lucky, and seeing things from this perspective just made everything so much clearer. 

“I can’t believe how how lucky I am,” Kouyou whispered out his thoughts, reaching a hand over to cup the side of Yuu’s face gently. Yuu stared doe-eyed to him, bewildered by the sudden affectionate display.

“What’s wrong?” Yuu asked, his smile fading slightly, a tinge of worry in his voice. Kouyou just smiled broadly to him, crinkling up his eyes and nose as he did so. 

“I love you so, _so_ much,” Kouyou said out in a long sigh, feeling warmth spread from his heart to the rest of his body, running through his very fingertips that caressed Yuu’s cheek adoringly. “And I’ll wait forever to hear you say them back. I’ll wait, Aoi. No matter how long it takes, I promise.”

Yuu’s heart drummed frenziedly to the sound of his words. Something must have happened with Yutaka, the raven thought, baffled by Kouyou’s sudden sentimentality. Kouyou had always been romantic with Yuu, had always been so affectionate with him, but this – _this_... felt different, strangely. And just when Yuu thought Kouyou couldn’t outdo himself, the blond went ahead and proved himself even further.

 _Did Yutaka say something to Kouyou?_ Yuu thought to himself, his stomach flipping around in dread. What could Yutaka possibly say that would make Kouyou like this? 

“Are things okay between you and Yutaka?” Yuu asked the blond in a soft voice, still feeling somewhat uneasy.

Kouyou gazed back into his eyes with such intense love and adoration it made Yuu go weak.

“We understand each other,” Kouyou explained in a murmur, a gentle smile on his face. “Yutaka and I.”

Yuu breathed out a sigh of relief. “That’s good. I just… You’re acting weird, I just wanted to make sure you were okay after talking with him.”

Kouyou emitted a low chuckle, shook his head, then withdrew his hand from Yuu’s face to place it back against the steering wheel, prepared to start driving. Though, he was still beaming from ear to ear to Yuu, seemingly unable to contain his delight at the sight of the raven-haired.

 _I’m so lucky._  

“We’ll head to the mall now, then. I already have a pretty good idea of what you’ll be wearing tomorrow, Aoi.”

~

As expected, Kouyou brought Yuu to a rather high-end mall, filled with nothing but designer labels, leaving the raven-haired feeling rather intimidated and small in comparison. Yuu was definitely not used to Kouyou’s kind of lifestyle, and it would still take him some time to get accustomed to it. Yuu clutched Kouyou’s arm close to him as the blond walked him past the many luxurious-looking shops, all decorated with flashy nameboards of foreign names that Yuu _couldn’t_ even pronounce.

Kouyou eventually stopped in front of a French labelled menswear store, striding in confidently past the glass doors to an elongated room displaying a full range of clothes – from jackets to belts, from socks to wallets – all with exorbitantly written price tags that quickly sent Yuu’s face paling upon glimpsing at the price.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Takashima,” one of the store’s assistants stepped up to greet, her face perfectly made-up, her red lips in a poised smile, her hair neatly tied back into a high bun. The woman was dressed in a tight pencil skirt and a long sleeved blouse, and appeared to recognize Kouyou right off the bat, so Yuu instantly knew Kouyou must be a regular here. “We’ve been expecting you and your company, ever since your call. How can we help you today?” 

Kouyou simply gave a brief nod, then proceeded to walk down the long line of clothesrack, leaving Yuu to watch in complete awe as the blond CEO raised his fingers and ran them down past the numerous suits, parting his lips to speak with utmost precision.

“We won’t take much of your time today. I just need a new black tuxedo,” Kouyou began, drifting his hand down a particular suit. “Say, three buttons. Size 48 regular, a white dress shirt–” Kouyou turned his head to the shelf across the room, analyzing the shirts on display with pursed lips. “I’ll try the blue as well. I’ll have the black vernice shoe in size ten. Maybe a bowtie, maybe not. We’ll see how it looks on later.”

“Definitely,” the woman signaled the rest of the shop assistants to move to assist, and Yuu watched wide-eyed as they moved in a flurry to prepare the clothing Kouyou had just asked for. Kouyou was such an expert in this, Yuu wondered how long Kouyou had been doing this for. “What about your company, Mr. Takashima?”

Kouyou broke into a sly smile then, fixating his attention back to the raven-haired; who was currently wrapping his arms rather self-consciously to himself as he stood in the middle of it all. The blond’s eyes lingered against Yuu’s form, scanning Yuu in an almost sensual manner, his eyes discernably tracing over the curve of the younger man’s bum. The raven blushed slightly when he realized Kouyou – in a sense – was checking him out.

“I want him in a white tuxedo,” Kouyou declared suddenly, snapping his fingers. “Not too dressy. One button, maybe. Sleek will be a good look on him – he’s slim. I think a bowtie will look cute on him, so let’s try that. You’ll have to measure him, though. Shoes, too.”

“Roger,” the woman nodded, examining Yuu’s figure before her quickly. “I think I already have a pretty good idea. He’ll be in safe hands, Mr. Takashima. Right this way, please…” she trailed off, politely asking for Yuu’s name.

“You can just call me Aoi,” Yuu croaked meekly.

“Right! Aoi...” The woman appeared a little hesitant at the unformality. “We’ll just measure you real quick if you just come with us, and let you try on a couple of our best suits…”

“I’ll be waiting,” Kouyou flashed Yuu a conniving grin, waving the raven-haired off. Yuu would have stuck a tongue out at him had they been alone, but the presence of the shop staff deterred him from doing so.

Oh, _boy_. Yuu wondered what he was seriously getting himself into with Kouyou this time.

~

Measurements took a faster time than expected, and soon Yuu was stepping out of the dressing room, clothed awkwardly in his first tuxedo. He’d taken one look at the mirror while trying it on and had gaped at himself, already unable to recognize himself in such an expensive suit. He was just a twenty-one years old university student who wore a T-shirt and jeans on a daily basis, for god’s sake. Yuu was definitely not cut out for this. Still, as he fumbled with his clothes and walked shyly out of the dressing room to let Kouyou take a look at him, the blond’s reaction was gratifying enough to make it all worth it.

Kouyou had been sitting comfortably on the sofa outside, already dressed in his black tuxedo with his legs crossed, waiting patiently for his raven-haired lover to come out. A shop assistant stood next to him with a tray in hand, complete with complimentary glasses of juice to serve, desperate to provide the blond CEO with the best service they could offer.

Yuu didn’t even have time to gawk at how handsome Kouyou looked, though – the moment he stepped out, Kouyou’s eyes were immediately glimmering, his lips curling into a pleased smile, liking very much what he saw. The CEO leaned back in his seat and folded his arms, smirking at the view as Yuu fidgeted and pulled at his suit, embarrassed by the attention, and still not feeling used to being dressed so extravagantly like this. 

“Well?” Yuu asked nervously, aware of the fact that the rest of the shop staff were listening in on attentively, anticipating Kouyou’s opinion with bated breath. 

“Turn around,” was all Kouyou said, twirling his fingers.

Yuu frowned and did as instructed, allowing the blond to take a good look at his behind.

“Nice,” Kouyou commented casually.

…Was he for _real_? What was he _even_ looking at?! This man sometimes… 

“Nice fit, I mean,” Kouyou let out a chuckle, slowly getting up from the sofa to walk to Yuu’s side. “Very nice. I like it on you. White’s your color, like I thought – it suits your dark hair so perfectly.” He said this as he wandered his hand up to Yuu’s neck, ghosting it against the raven’s skin, playing slightly with Yuu’s hair.

Yuu grunted, sending a glare to the blond.

“Have you taken a look at the mirror? You look great,” Kouyou hummed innocently, turning Yuu around to face the nearest mirror, a full-length one just opposite them. Yuu’s eyes lit up in surprise as he saw the stark contrast between his look and Kouyou’s – the blond CEO was charmingly dressed in his black tuxedo and a bowtie, an air of sophistication around him as usual. But Yuu didn’t look too bad, either, in his fitting white tuxedo, looking young, stylish and fresh, complementing Kouyou standing next to him perfectly. 

“Maybe we’ll tie your hair into a small ponytail,” Kouyou suggested, raising his hand to grab at Yuu’s shoulder-length hair from the back, twisting it into a makeshift ponytail. “Like this. So it’s neater; and everyone can take a good look at your gorgeous eyes and lips.”

Yuu looked at the mirror in a daze, amazed by how different he suddenly looked. He _actually_ looked befitting to be attending a gala event with Kouyou now, and he didn’t look devastatingly like a mess, or an uncultured swine for that matter.

Kouyou simply smiled to the mirror, looking every part of the dashing prince by Yuu’s side. “Stunning,” the blond whispered, lowering his lips dangerously close to Yuu’s ear. “What a stunning little flower.” 

Yuu turned his eyes away, red-faced. “I still have a couple more tuxedos to try on.”

Kouyou laughed at the sight of his lover looking so embarrassed. Was he teasing him too much in public space?

“We have all day,” Kouyou winked, pulling his hand away from Yuu’s hair and stepping aside from the raven. “But if we want to make it for my restaurant reservation, perhaps just two more suits will do.” 

Yuu nodded at his words. “I’ll make it fast!” 

“You don’t have to rush,” Kouyou laughed. 

~

They eventually settled on both of their tuxedos, but as Yuu waited patiently by the cash register while they rung up the bill for their clothes, the raven-haired froze when the cashier voiced out the total costs accumulated.

“Visa, please,” Kouyou said flippantly, drawing one of his credit cards out from his wallet to hand over to the cashier. Yuu swallowed hard as the blond paid promptly for their clothes, wondering if the amount Kouyou had just spent even meant anything to him at all. 

Somehow, the knowledge that Kouyou could so effortlessly provide for Yuu and get him anything he wanted made Kouyou _so_ damn sexy. And Yuu may be materialistic, but he was absolutely certain Kouyou couldn’t get any hotter than this.

“Yes, sweetheart?” Kouyou asked, raising an eyebrow to him when he realized Yuu hadn’t peeled his eyes off him once.

Yuu just smiled to him. “Nothing,” he answered cutely, but it only made Kouyou snake an arm around his waist and pull him closer to the blond, unable to resist the sight of Yuu like this.

~

They had a late lunch and an early dinner later at a lavish restaurant on the top floor of the mall, and they landed a nice table by the window, overseeing the bustling city from their spot. Yuu insisted on Kouyou ordering for him as usual, considering he hadn’t even _heard_ of half of the dishes on the menu before, and he trusted Kouyou’s taste and recommendation on what was good anyway.

After placing their orders, Kouyou was eager to catch up with Yuu on the past week, especially with regards to the meeting Yuu had with Akira on Sunday.

“I’m horrified at the thought of things he must have said to you,” Kouyou lamented with a sigh, crossing his arms at the thought. “Akira must have said a ton about me.”

Yuu grinned, deciding to alleviate Kouyou’s concern a little. “Wellll, they weren’t _too_ bad things. He was mostly just an overly concerned friend.”

Kouyou made a face. “Oh, he gets that way sometimes. I apologize if he came off as unnecessarily overbearing – I get he means well, but sometimes he gets a little naggy. Too much for my taste.”

The raven scoffed, feigning shock. “Too much? You’re the one that’s always breathing down my neck about things and telling me what to do.” God knew how worried Kouyou got whenever he was away from the raven, and the amount of texts Kouyou sent to Yuu whenever the raven failed to reply him within the hour.

Yuu had only meant it as a joke, but Kouyou didn’t seem to perceive it as one. The older man paused for a second at Yuu’s words, his face deadpan, as if startled by the unexpected insult.

“Breathing down your neck?” The blond asked, and the mixture of hurt and confusion in his voice immediately made Yuu regret his choice of words. “Do I really do that, Aoi? I never realized I did.”

“I was kidding,” Yuu rushed to say, his heart hammering fearfully in his heart. He never meant to offend the blond, but the raven was starting to realize of late that he had to take care of his words, for the things he sometimes said struck things inside of Kouyou, and made Kouyou think twice about himself.

Yuu never wanted to make Kouyou feel that way; he already knew how secretly insecure Kouyou was, and Akira’s words to him last Sunday pretty much confirmed it. He never wanted to wound Kouyou in any way ever again.

“You have to tell me these things if it makes you upset, Aoi,” Kouyou said, tight-lipped and in a frown. His voice faltered, and he was quickly looking all too crossed with himself again, almost like he was blaming himself for making his lover feel such a way. “I… I won’t know if you don’t say it. I know I may do or say some things sometimes that may come off as tiresome, but…”

_It was happening all over again._

“I promise I was joking,” Yuu hastily said in a whisper, reaching over for Kouyou’s hands. He enclosed their fingers tightly together, squeezing the blond’s palm for reassurance. “You know I never want to hurt you. You’re the sweetest to me, I couldn’t ask for anything better.”

Kouyou still looked relatively unsure. “Mmm,” he murmured, his eyes far-off and distant.

Yuu’s heart wrenched, knowing his unintentional insensitivity had led to Kouyou questioning himself again. In a bid to lighten up the mood, the raven-haired continued to chatter on about his meeting with Akira, hoping it could provide as distraction for the blond.

“…So he basically talked about your college days, and how he’s always admired the person you are and have become. And he just wanted to make sure I knew what I was getting into, and he was just worried I wouldn’t take this relationship seriously with you…” Yuu explained, still clutching Kouyou’s hand tightly in his. “But of course, I assured him I wasn’t just treating this as a one-off thing, or anything like that. He knows I’m serious about you.”

Now _that_ immediately brought a smile to Kouyou’s face, erasing all previous tension.

“You are?” Kouyou asked, looking on fondfully to the raven.

“Of course I am,” Yuu smiled warmly back. Kouyou’s own smile only widened, and the blond then looked shyly down to their hands clasped together, his eyes radiating with happiness. Times like these showed Yuu how easily contented the older man was, and how simple it was to make Kouyou happy through just romantic words and gestures. Did Yuu not show affection enough to Kouyou? Or had it taken Yuu such a long while to ‘fess up he returned Kouyou’s feelings that the blond still was in doubts sometimes about how Yuu truly felt about him?

Perhaps Yuu wasn’t doing enough to show the blond he loved him. Was Yuu too cold? Too careless in his words sometimes, too indifferent whenever Kouyou showed his affection to him?

Then it occurred to the raven he still hadn’t done something he should have done a long time ago. With Akira’s voice burning in the back of his head – _Kouyou’s all about trust, you know? I don’t think he’d feel good knowing he didn’t know so many things about you_ – the raven-haired drew in a hesitant breath, cast his eyes down to the table, and gathered what little courage he had to speak.

“And to prove my seriousness, I… I have something to tell you, actually.”

Kouyou’s face paled at how solemn Yuu was sounding, and the blond was instantly concerned. “What is it?”

“Um…” Yuu played briefly with Kouyou’s fingers, biting his lip. “It’s about my name, actually.” The blond remained silent, and Yuu knew Kouyou must be feeling confused. “Remember how I told you Aoi wasn’t my real name when we first exchanged messages?”

Realizaton quickly dawned unto Kouyou’s face. “Oh. I forgot about that.”

“Yeah,” Yuu looked to him with a timid expression. “Please don’t get mad at me for not telling you sooner.”

Kouyou seemed surprised that Yuu would harbor such a thought, and shook his head with an understanding smile.

“Aoi, I’m not going to get mad at you over a name. It doesn’t matter to me.”

Yuu’s eyes shimmered up to him, immensely relieved at his words. “Really?” He would have thought Kouyou would have flared up at him over this… Or was it true that Kouyou couldn’t bring himself to get angry at Yuu over anything, really?

Kouyou chuckled at the sight of Yuu cowering frightenedly before him. “Oh, _babe_ … Why would I ever get mad at you over that? I’m just happy you’ve decided to give your heart to me. You could be called Lucifer for all I care.”

A grateful smile spread across Yuu’s face. “Thankfully for you, my name isn’t Lucifer.”

“Then what is?” Kouyou hummed, his face looking to Yuu expectantly.

Yuu’s voice was soft but steady when it left him. And for some reason, Yuu felt a part of his heart leave him as he spoke, because he knew he wasn’t only giving out a name, _no_ – he was giving out another part of himself to Kouyou, he was allowing Kouyou to get in closer and closer to his comfort zone.

He was in the process of giving Kouyou his whole heart. And he would, eventually. Bit by bit.

“It’s… Yuu.” The raven finally revealed. “My name is… Yuu.”

Kouyou took a moment to take it in, listening intently to the raven as he did so. And when Yuu’s name finally sunk down into him, the smile on his face only got broader.

“It’s beautiful,” Kouyou murmured.

And then he was picking up Yuu’s hand, holding it and bringing to his lips. Yuu watched as Kouyou kissed him tenderly against his skin, showing just how thankful he was for Yuu’s trust.

“Yuu,” Kouyou repeated, his face stuck in a permanent smile, as if still in disbelief he’d just heard Yuu’s real name. “Yuu, _Yuu_ , Yuu… Yuu.”

The raven laughed, liking how much Kouyou seemed to be enjoying this. “Yes, Kouyou?”

“It rings off my lips,” Kouyou grinned, an excited gleam in his eye. “Just like its owner. So beautiful and so tasteful. I don’t think I’ll ever get over it. _Yuu_.”

Yuu giggled. “You’re embarrassing.”

Kouyou grinned wider. “Isn’t that how you like me? Embarrassingly romantic.”

Yuu scrunched his nose up, huffing in annoyance. “I have _no_ clue where you got that idea from.”

Kouyou smugly smiled in response, knowing the younger man was teasing him again. “Well, let’s just say I have several ideas about you, Yuu, and that’s only one of them…”

Yuu narrowed his eyes to him, his face indignant. _Honestly_ , Kouyou was such a pervert. Yuu couldn’t stand him at _all_.

(Yuu loved him _so_ much.)

And just like that, their afternoon was made all better already. And watching Kouyou smile like this – with his eyes dancing, accompanied by his throaty laugh, and his usually icy-cold features softening with every word Yuu uttered – Yuu watched him with a fluttering heart, realizing he would never find another man like this again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long update. I had planned to update earlier, but I didn't have much time to use my laptop overseas and when I came back I started developing a fever. The last I checked my degree celsius is 38.9 degrees -__- I don't know how I'm still alive right now.
> 
> My goal for Seeking Arrangement was to complete this story before I fly for Tokyo next week, but I'm not exactly sure how possible that is right now :((( I am going to try as hard as I can to get this done, but at the same time I have a lot of things to settle so we'll see how this works out.
> 
> Anyway, this chapter is ~slightly~ shorter than the others, but hopefully the next update will be in 2-3 days!!!! And in here Yuu finally reveals his real name to Kouyou !!! And Kouyou's surprisingly calm about the whole thing, too~ Amazing. 
> 
> Love to hear your thoughts on this story as usual, so do leave a comment telling me what you thought. See you soon!


	19. Chapter 19

After a splendid dinner together, Kouyou took Yuu back to his apartment, of which they decided to spend the rest of the night indulging in sloppy kisses and mindless chatter over glasses of red wine. Yuu was seated comfortably against Kouyou’s lap in the living room, and every other word from Kouyou seemed to evoke a flirty giggle and drunken smile from his raven-haired lover. Yuu loved moments like these the best – just simply spending it curled up against Kouyou, listening to his husky voice whisper sweet nothings to Yuu, feeling their heartbeats match each other’s pace in the loud silence.

“It’s the heat,” Yuu could hear himself saying to the blond after awhile, when he already had a drink or two and was starting to feel the effects of the alcohol catch up to him. Yuu was getting slightly dizzy, and the room was growing so hot it was getting hard for Yuu to catch his breath.

“It’s so warm. So, _so_ warm, Kouyou.”

Kouyou looked equally bothered by the stifling heat, his breaths coming out in small pants, and soon he was slithering an arm around the back of Yuu’s waist, fingers tugging at the hems of Yuu’s shirt. Yuu knew what Kouyou was getting at – and considering Yuu had teased Kouyou to _death_ the last time they saw each other, and the fact that they had just undergone a week without touching each other – Yuu was certain Kouyou was _dying_ with burning desire for him, since Yuu knew the older man could never go long without monopolizing Yuu in all the ways he wanted to.

“Maybe you should undress,” Kouyou whispered suggestively, pressing his lips gently to Yuu’s neck. Yuu made a small noise, shying away from Kouyou’s hold.

“So annoying,” Yuu giggled to the blond, still shaking his head, bringing the glass of wine he had in his hand to his lips. As he took a small sip of the liquor, he felt Kouyou tighten his arms around his waist, pushing him closer to the blond. Kouyou then nuzzled his nose up cutely against Yuu’s, their faces just inches apart, their breaths heavy on each other’s skin.

 _God_ , it was so hot Yuu could barely breathe. And as Kouyou captured Yuu’s lips with his, the warm slide of Kouyou’s tongue into his mouth – with just the slightest bitter alcoholic taste – made the raven shiver. Yuu closed his eyes as Kouyou kissed him slowly, _wantingly_ , breathlessly; and the raven’s throat was quickly making all these incredibly sinful noises of pleasure in response, something he knew riled up the blond even more by the second.

“Nnn,” Yuu moaned, just as Kouyou’s hands slid down his waist to his ass, cupping a butt cheek playfully in his large palm. Kouyou’s kisses were getting more urgent, more rough now, and Yuu’s head was swirling more and _more_ with every breath being stolen from him.

“Please _– Nnn_ , Kouyou _–_ ” Yuu gasped, pulling his lips away in a desperate bid to catch some air. Kouyou wouldn’t hear of it, though. The older man was impatiently pulling Yuu back into the kiss, his teeth yanking open Yuu’s bottom lip, sliding his tongue in once more.

“ _God_ , Kouyou _– nngh_ , please _–_ ” Yuu could feel himself melting right under Kouyou’s kisses and touches, his eyes almost seeing white, his body giving way too easily to the blond CEO. “Please,” the raven managed to slip out, in between their fervid kissing. “I just– want–”

“Tell me what you want,” Kouyou breathed out, eyes intoxicatingly looking up to Yuu, his body blazing with nothing but lust. “Tell me what you want me to do to you. I’ll give you anything. I’d give you everything, Yuu.”

Yuu’s already blushing face got even redder. “Stop,” the raven pouted, punching the blond lightly in the chest. “Do you get even more embarrassing when you’re drunk, or what?”

“Mmm,” Kouyou just hummed in reply, his lips descending to Yuu’s neck once more. The raven fluttered his eyes shut as Kouyou sunk his teeth down into Yuu’s skin, re-bruising the healing pink-purple marks that were still there. Yuu straddled Kouyou’s hips as Kouyou marked him ruthlessly, leaving the raven to voice out gasps and tortured whimpers in response. Yuu clung onto Kouyou dearly as he began dry-humping the older man’s growing erection, feeling it slowly harden and start to prod right up against Yuu’s butt.

Yuu was pleased by the reaction – he had waited way too long for this. His hands slipped down frustratedly to the front of Kouyou’s pants, unzipping it and pulling it down hastily along with the blond’s briefs. When Yuu finally came into sight with Kouyou’s hard cock, the raven was sneakily grinning, satisfied with what he saw.

Gently nudging Kouyou’s lips away from his neck, Yuu lowered his own body until his lips met with the head of Kouyou’s member, and then he was darting a tongue out experimentally, licking at the pre-cum that had already gathered at the tip. Kouyou made a loud approving groan, backing down and allowing Yuu to do whatever he pleased with him, and soon Yuu was kissing and worshipping Kouyou’s cock with his whole tongue, eager and desperate to please the blond.

Kouyou’s breaths came staggering, throwing his head back in groans of ecstacy. As he thrusted his hips up, pushing his cock further into Yuu’s mouth, the younger man was accepting the intrusion excitedly, enveloping more of Kouyou’s cock past his lips. Kouyou dug his hands into Yuu’s hair, guiding his lover’s mouth to slowly deepthroat his cock, and as it bumped nicely against the back of Yuu’s throat, Kouyou was letting out a blissful moan, his eyes shut in pleasure.

“ _Fuck_ , Yuu, I’ve missed this so much…” Kouyou whispered, pulling slightly at Yuu’s hair, pulling him off his cock a little. Yuu paid attention to Kouyou’s cues, allowing the blond to slide himself back in after awhile, and soon Kouyou was thrusting his cock in and out of the raven’s mouth carelessly, fucking Yuu’s mouth excitedly with plenty of loud hisses and groans.

“Nnngh,” Yuu let slip another moan as he hollowed his cheeks to take Kouyou in deeper, his tongue swirling against the sides of his cock. Kouyou played with Yuu’s silky locks, groaning loudly as Yuu gave a particularly hard suck.

Kouyou resisted the urge to close his eyes, and managed to peek them open slightly to watch Yuu in the act. The raven-haired’s face was full of blush and his gaze was in a hypnotic lull as he sucked Kouyou off, his face looking in the most subservient manner possible. _Fuck_. This was too much for Kouyou to take, as many times as he’d seen Yuu in this position before.

“Babe,” Kouyou whispered, tugging Yuu off his cock by gripping lightly at his hair. Yuu fell easily back down to the ground, his lips moist and wet with Kouyou’s fluids. Kouyou grabbed himself, heavy with Yuu’s spit and pre-cum, and gave himself a couple of quick pumps, dirtying Yuu’s face further. He flaunted his length in front of Yuu’s lewd eyes.

“You want this in your tight ass, don’t you?” Kouyou said, a hint of arrogance in his voice.

Yuu was quickly nodding, pouting as he gave an intense stare to his lover’s cock, his hands at the same time uncomfortably pulling at the hems of his shirt.

“It’s so hot,” Yuu whined, and then he was pulling his shirt off him, throwing it to the floor. “Oh, _god_. Please, I just–”

“Tell me what you want,” Kouyou was reiterating, his smile smug, and then he was pulling Yuu by the arm up and seating Yuu back onto his lap, but not before tugging at the offending material still clothing Yuu’s lower half of the body.

“Get rid of it,” Kouyou demanded, annoyed Yuu wasn’t still fully naked, and Yuu was rushing to pull at the zipper of his jeans, moaning as he finally allowed his erection to breathe. He wiggled his butt out of his jeans expertly and tossed them to the floor, giggling as he felt Kouyou wrap an arm around his graceful form, grabbing at his ass and kneading the soft mounds roughly.

“It’s pink this time,” Kouyou purred, his eyes glued to the thin layer of lacey underwear Yuu had on. “Your underwear. It’s very pretty on you.”

Yuu gloated happily in response, but soon after gave a loud cry when Kouyou unexpectedly delivered a harsh slap to his left buttcheek.

“ _Daddy_ …” Yuu sulked, squirming his ass right into Kouyou’s palms, spreading his thighs and wrapping his legs around Kouyou’s waist in such a way that his hole was pressed right up against Kouyou’s naked dick.

“Why are you always punishing me? Yuu did nothing wrong…” As the raven said this, however, he started to straddle Kouyou suggestively, grinning playfully as he humped Kouyou’s moist cock, teasing the blond endlessly as he brushed his entrance against the tip of his lover’s cock over and over again, painting his hole with Kouyou’s white pre-cum.

Kouyou hissed at the sensation, his cock jolting endlessly in anticipation. And then he was reaching a hand up impatiently, pushing his fingers roughly into Yuu’s mouth without warning.

Yuu made a surprised sound of protest, jumping up against Kouyou’s lap at the movement, but the blond tightened his grip around Yuu’s waist and held him firmly in his position, eyes encouraging the raven to accept the intrusion into his mouth and suck against Kouyou’s fingers. Yuu squinted his eyes to Kouyou in a sore pout, but complied anyway, knowing Kouyou was eagerly awaiting to fuck him properly.

Yuu sucked as hard as he could, making sure he let out cute moaning noises at the same time, wanting to torture the blond with as much teasing as possible. Kouyou grunted, knowing _exactly_ what Yuu was doing, and as Yuu took more of Kouyou’s fingers into his mouth with fluttery eyes, and licked them down the sides and twirled his tongue against the tip – mimicking how he had just been sucking Kouyou’s cock earlier – the blond CEO decided he’d had enough and pulled his fingers out of Yuu’s mouth harshly. Kouyou slapped Yuu’s other ass cheek with his other hand, making sure this time his raven lover learnt his lesson.

Yuu looked to Kouyou with quivering lips, and a mouth coated and dripping with saliva, his eyes teary and sparkling at the recent slap.

 _Fuck_. One look at Yuu’s face, and Kouyou had never in his life gotten a more intense urge to fuck Yuu as hard as he could, until he rendered Yuu’s legs useless the next day. (He knew he couldn’t, though. They had a gala event to attend.)

“ _Daddy_ …” Yuu huffed, painful tears streaking his cheeks. “What did I do wrong this time?”

Kouyou frowned.

“You’ve been a very, very bad _babydoll_ ,” Kouyou answered, raising an eyebrow. Yuu just pouted in response.

The blond CEO’s fingers reached down to in between Yuu’s thighs and pushed the thin, lacey underwear to the side, exposing Yuu’s pink entrance easily. And when they did, Kouyou was pressing the tip of his index finger against Yuu’s hole, ready to prepare the raven. Yuu sucked in a breath, taking a second to mentally prepare himself first, then gave the go-ahead for Kouyou to slip his finger inside of him with a small, timid nod.

“ _Fuck,_ ” was the first thing Yuu said, easing his eyes shut tightly as Kouyou’s first finger went in, slowly moving in deeper inside of him. It had only been a week since they last fucked like this, but Yuu couldn’t help the wave of _intense_ pleasure that passed over him as Kouyou prepared him slowly with his fingers alone. God, Kouyou always managed to turn Yuu into a hungry slut in his presence, and Yuu didn’t even know why.

“Feel good, babydoll?” Kouyou breathed, tracing his finger sensually inside of him. Yuu nodded his head, reaching his arms over to wrap them insistently around Kouyou’s neck.

“More,” Yuu pleaded, and then Kouyou was pushing more fingers in, and the sudden increase in thickness sent Yuu elevating his hips immediately, his lips parted in a big, silent moan. “Oh my _god_ , Kouyou…”

“Babydoll likes it, I see,” Kouyou murmured, licking his lips at the sight. His fingers moved even more aggressively in and out of the raven, stretching the raven as far and wide as he liked.

Yuu gasped and whimpered and whined, _and_ then a sudden curl of Kouyou’s fingers sent Yuu digging his nails into Kouyou’s back, his body convulsing from the pleasure.

“Just fuck me,” Yuu cried out after awhile, his thighs squeezing Kouyou’s fingers tighter in between his legs. Kouyou grunted in reply, then pulled his hand out, placing it back against the side of Yuu’s hips.

“Put it in,” Yuu begged, his voice coming out in desperate pants. Reaching his arm over to beneath the coffee table, Yuu grabbed for the condoms and lube he knew would be there and hurriedly prepared Kouyou. Once his lover was properly wrapped and lubed, Yuu spread his pale thighs wider and lifted himself until he was atop Kouyou’s cock, his body unable to wait for _even_ another second.

“What a demanding little flower,” Kouyou cooed, his lips curving into an amused smirk.

And then he was grabbing both of Yuu’s ass cheeks from behind and spreading them wide, quickly impaling Yuu’s entrance onto his large cock. Yuu instantly let out another cry as he was lowered onto Kouyou’s girth impatiently, the walls of his muscles quickly stretching to accommodate Kouyou’s cock. Yuu gyrated his hips a little to fit all of Kouyou into him, and as his muscles tightened hotly around Kouyou – his mouth hung open, his eyes were heavily lidded and his raven hair was tossed sweatily back.

“I missed this,” Yuu whimpered, savoring Kouyou’s thickness inside of him. He could feel every push and squelch, every little movement of Kouyou’s cock inside of him and _god_ , did Yuu fucking love it.

It took them a moment to adjust to the feeling of each other’s bodies against each other. Yuu was clutching on for life at Kouyou’s hair, whereas Kouyou held him by the ass, his nails gripping them tightly and groaning as he was thrust into Yuu’s quivering heat.

“Can I move, babydoll?” Kouyou asked softly, when it seemed like Yuu finally settled down from the harsh intrusion.

Yuu didn’t say a word; he just nodded his head simply into Kouyou’s shoulder, burying it timidly there. Kouyou kissed the back of his hair gently, then lifted Yuu up a little by the ass, then set him down again, until he was establishing a neat, continuous pace. He did it over and over again, picking Yuu up higher each time, making sure the raven-haired slid down harder and faster onto his cock in a repeated motion.

“ _Ah!_ Aaahhh! _Kouuuuyooouuuu_ …!” Yuu wailed, clenching onto Kouyou’s hair strands tighter and tighter with every thrust Kouyou gave upwards.

Soon after, he was hitting all of Yuu’s delicious spots, and with every thrust to his prostate Yuu began seeing stars. “Kouyou, Kouyou, Kouyou, _fuck_ , nnnngh _Daddy’s cock is the best, fuck_ …!”

Kouyou smiled smugly at how loud Yuu was being, allowing Yuu’s noises to guide him to go faster or slower. He picked up his pace then slowed down again, thoroughly teasing Yuu to the brink, before pulling him back again. Yuu couldn’t do anything else but release a stream of moans as Kouyou thrusted continuously into him, with the blond CEO occasionally slapping Yuu’s jiggling ass, unable to stand just how lewd Yuu’s body was.

Kouyou continued assaulting Yuu’s prostate, reveling in every reaction he elicited from the raven, and delighting in watching Yuu come undone because of him. As rolls of sweat began dripping down the side of Kouyou’s face, the blond CEO was shoving a hand in between them to wrap it around Yuu’s erected cock.

“Daddy!” Yuu gasped at the touch, and as Kouyou continued thrusting up into Yuu’s favourite spot just like before, he slid his hand up and down around Yuu’s member, jerking Yuu off to the same speed and rhythm. The raven-haired was quickly shrieking, breathing out heavily in a multitude of uncontrollable sobs.

“I’m going to cuuummm…” Yuu mewled desperately, pulling at Kouyou’s hair weakly, his body trembling non-stop. “Nnn! _Nngh!_ Nnn!”

In the next moment, the raven-haired – desperate to reach his orgasm – was gathering what little strength he had, to ride Kouyou’s cock as fast as he could, tortured-sounding cries leaving Yuu’s blushing face at the same time.

 _Fuck_. Kouyou could cum just by looking at this face. As Yuu rode him into oblivion, tears still trickling down his cheeks, Kouyou shivered in pleasure, knowing he would be unable to hold on for long at such a lecherous sight of Yuu before him.

“ _Nnn, nngh…_! Daaadddyyyy!”

Yuu finally came with an overwhelming shout, his hole tightening sweetly around Kouyou’s dick, pushing Kouyou further to his limit. Cum spluttered furiously from Yuu’s cock back onto the raven’s flat stomach, decorating his pretty fair skin nicely, and seeing it immediately made Kouyou’s stomach clench with a familiar throbbing ache… as well as gave Kouyou an idea.

Pushing Yuu right back down onto the sofa, Kouyou pulled out of Yuu just as the older man approached his release, and he watched as his cum shot out and painted Yuu’s naked body in several white streaks, dirtying his little flower’s body even further.

Kouyou had never seen a more gorgeous sight, and he was instantly, temporarily, mesmerized.

Meanwhile, Yuu could barely catch his breath.

Lying against the sofa, his eyes fluttered up and down, drifting in and out of consciousness from the mindblowing orgasm he’d just had. He could hear Kouyou pulling something out of his pants, and then before he could even comprehend what was going on –

_Snap!_

Yuu’s heart almost stopped. Was that a camera click?

“What was that?” The raven-haired panted out. Opening his eyes once more, he could see Kouyou grinning deviously to him, hurriedly putting the cellphone in his hands away.

Yuu rolled his eyes when he realized what his lover was doing. Of _course_ he wouldtake a photo of him like this, considering Kouyou’d been begging endlessly for a dirty photo from Yuu the past few days. “What a pervert.”

“Hmm?” Kouyou laughed, then lowered his body to the raven to plant a kiss against Yuu’s cheek, trailing his lips all the way down his neck to his stomach. “You’re very pretty. Very pretty when you’re covered all over in my cum, too.”

Yuu narrowed his eyes to him, but cuddled up needingly to his lover anyway.

“I demand something in exchange,” Yuu huffed.

“What?” Kouyou chuckled. “You know I can, and will, give you anything you want, babydoll.”

Yuu smiled at his words. “I’ll have to think about it first. But until then… You owe me one!”

Kouyou grinned, shaking his head at how cute Yuu was acting.

“I can’t wait to show you off tomorrow,” he lowered his husky voice into a whisper, kissing the sides of Yuu’s head softly. Yuu winced at his kiss, hiding his smile. “Everyone will be so jealous when you’re seen on my arm tomorrow. You’re so beautiful.”

Kouyou stroked Yuu’s raven hair soothingly until the younger man fell asleep peacefully against him, and then he was carrying Yuu’s body up into his arms, bringing him back to his bedroom.

And in there, Kouyou watched Yuu’s sleeping countenance next to him until weariness took over the blond; and then he was spending the rest of the night lost in sweet dreams of spending the rest of his life with Yuu – his precious little flower.

~

Yuu awoke alone in bed the next morning, to white sheets wrapped warmly around his naked body, and the sound of running tap water in the distance. Yawning tiredly to himself, Yuu struggled to push the sheets off him and pulled himself up against the bed. He could feel a mild headache coming on, what with the wine they’d been drinking the night before. Ugh, and his ass and hips were sore as fuck. Yuu trembled at the thought of his rough lovemaking with Kouyou last night, though. Kouyou was always _so_ good…

Kouyou was probably in the bathroom washing himself up, Yuu thought, falling back against the bed lazily. He eyed a pile of neatly folded clothes on the table by the bed, recognizing them to be his from last night, and smiled when he realized Kouyou had bothered to gather them together and fold them into a neat pile like this. Kouyou really was the perfect boyfriend, wasn’t he?

Reaching out a hand for his jeans’ pocket, Yuu managed to retrieve his phone from within, checking it for any urgent messages – especially ones from Yutaka. He was still partially worried over Yutaka and Kouyou’s exchange yesterday, but since it looked like it had gone well, Yuu just hoped his best friend and lover could remain on good terms like this for as long as Yuu had the both of them by his side.

Surprisingly enough, Yutaka hadn’t sent a message to him yet. Perhaps the brunet was finally letting go and placing his trust in Kouyou to take care of Yuu, and Yutaka was seeing no further need for him to still be keeping track with Yuu on a hourly basis, worried for Yuu’s safety. Yuu smiled with that thought – perhaps things were really changing between them after all.

Scrolling through his inbox, though, still made Yuu flinch at the sight of the many messages he’d left unreplied from his other sugar daddies. Some of them had gotten the hint that Yuu was busy or simply did not wish to keep in contact any further, and had stopped messaging him after a few _I miss you_ messages.

There appeared to be one regular sugar daddy that was still sending him messages, however. It was the attorney, the sugar daddy that proved to be the most regular and stable before Kouyou entered his life, and who was also responsible for paying off half of Yuu’s university student loan. Yuu owed the attorney a lot for doing so, but at the same time Yuu had spent many nights with him before, and it was justifiable that Yuu was paid appropriately for allowing the attorney to bed him like that on a frequent basis.

But ever since Yuu had started spending time with Kouyou, and found a far more trustworthy, deserving, and handsome sugar daddy in Kouyou, he’d stopped needing the attorney’s allowances. Yuu always had an inkling the attorney had started to harbor feelings for him of late, though. And from his many messages sent to the raven, Yuu was certain the attorney wouldn’t back down until he got a proper reply from Yuu.

– _Are you free this week? It’s been a long time, I miss you._

– _There’s a new movie coming out. Want to catch it together?_

– _Aoi? Are you there? You haven’t been replying to my messages. Is something wrong?_

– _Is there an issue with the allowance I’ve been giving you? I’ll raise it if you need more._

– _Aoi, please respond. I’m getting worried._

Yuu breathed out a soft sigh, wondering just how he was going to handle this. It would be better to let him know that Yuu wasn’t planning to continue their arrangement anymore, but Yuu frankly didn’t know how the attorney would react. And maybe Yuu was being a coward, for chickening out and leaving his sugar daddies without a word, but Yuu just… _God_. Yuu didn’t know what to do.

He stared to his phone screen for a while longer, biting on his lips anxiously as he contemplated over his next move. Maybe he could talk to Yutaka about this first. Maybe Yutaka could offer him better advice. There was no way in hell he would be talking about this to Kouyou, however. Kouyou didn’t even know Yuu had been having ongoing arrangements the same time he was going out with the blond, and Kouyou had never once questioned Yuu’s previous sugar daddy affairs either. Perhaps it had never crossed Kouyou’s mind that Yuu had previous arrangements, or perhaps Kouyou just never wanted to know about it.

The bathroom door creaked open, pulling Yuu out of his thoughts. Kouyou was soon stepping out of it with a towel wrapped around his waist, and another smaller towel around his bare shoulders, which the blond was using to dry his hair off quickly.

Yuu stared dumbfoundedly to Kouyou as the older man made his way to the bed, face breaking into a smile to Yuu when he realized his lover was awake.

“Good morning,” Kouyou said, squeezing his hair dry. A small smile spread on Yuu’s face as well at the sight – it was the first time he’d seen Kouyou with wet hair like this, and with his naked chest… glistening and dripping with water. Yuu tried hard to peel his eyes away from Kouyou’s sexy form, gulping as he admired the hard abs that decorated Kouyou’s lower stomach.

“G…Good… morning,” Yuu stuttered, wondering why he was so nervous suddenly. Kouyou was his lover, for goodness sake. And it wasn’t even the first time he was seeing Kouyou naked. Why was he getting so embarrassed?

Kouyou was chuckling when he saw the raven-haired turning his head away, visibly trying to hide his reddening cheeks.

“So, had a good night’s sleep?” Kouyou asked casually, seating himself down at the edge of the bed. Yuu just nodded his head. “Also, I figured I should tell you more about the gala event we’re going to.” _Right._ Yuu barely knew anything about it, except for the fact that he had just bought a suit worth several thousands to attend this one gala (which Yuu was pretty sure would be stripped off him by the end of the day anyway).

“My client, who’s kind of a big deal in this whole business, throws it every year at a grand hotel and invites all the top business associates to it. It’s a place where people network and mingle and hopefully have some fun, you know. But of course, when you have a ton of rich people coming together, including many socialites and celebrities, it’s bound to be big and gain some media attention. So it’s going to be just a _little_ crowded.”

Yuu widened his eyes. So it _really_ was going to be like what he imagined it to be. How was Kouyou expecting Yuu to converse properly with his friends, or business associates, when Yuu was just… well. _Nothing_?

“But I’m only a student,” Yuu moaned, feeling intimidated by Kouyou’s explanation already. Kouyou just laughed.

“But you’re my date for the night,” Kouyou teased, cocking his head to the side. “And you won’t leave me alone, will you? I’m going to be so lonely without anyone by my side.”

Yuu frowned. “Is Akira going?”

Kouyou nodded. “He is. Why?”

“Well, you have him,” Yuu pointed out.

Kouyou let out a sigh. “He’s not my date, Yuu. And when you’re going to be saying a million hellos and formalities and pretend like you _like_ all these people who just really want to get your partnership on a project, really, it’d be nice if I had someone I actually cared about to distract me and make me feel at home at the end of the day.”

Yuu smiled, satisfied by Kouyou’s answer. Kouyou always knew what to say to make Yuu feel better – and _needed_ – for this. “Fine! I’ll go with you. But I’m not going to know anyone there. So you can’t ever leave me alone. Promise?”

Kouyou grinned widely in response.

“Yuu, I wouldn’t ever let you out of my sight for a single second. I promise.”

~

Yuu thought he had an idea of how big the event was going to be, but clearly he had no clue at all. Not until it was approaching afternoon, and the raven was rather involved in a heavy make-out session with his older lover on the couch again – when Kouyou pulled away suddenly and rather spontaneously said he had to take Yuu to their “little beauty appointment”.

Yuu, as usual, was oblivious to Kouyou’s plans, and had tagged along innocently with the blond in his car to a prestigious hair and make-up salon Kouyou had booked an appointment with. Their expensive suits were brought along in the back of their car, ready for their stylists to dress them in nicely after they were done with all of their preparation.

To say Yuu was stoked was an understatement. Every single date he spent with Kouyou, he realized, was another step into Kouyou’s world, which was basically the world of the rich. Kouyou had taken him for quality massages at hotels, meals at overpriced restaurants, and most recently of late – extravagant shopping of clothes with price tags Yuu knew he could _never_ afford in his life. And now Kouyou was taking it another step further by bringing him to beauty salons and gala events.

Yuu had definitely experienced enough excitement these past few weeks alone with Kouyou to last him for a whole lifetime. Some people didn’t, or would never, get the opportunity to experience _even_ five minutes of what Yuu just had.

And right here, right now, after being greeted by a row of wacky-looking stylists as he walked into the luxurious-looking salon, Yuu was seated in a red velvety chair before a mirror glammed up with bright spotlights, while a hair stylist worked on his hair diligently from the back, and a make-up artist worked on his face meticulously from the front.

Yuu was forced to remain still, unable to budge an inch after having been told repeatedly by his stylists to not move _at all_ ; though it was hard to adhere to that instruction when every other minute a famous celebrity was walking past the doors to get their regular beauty fix – and Yuu had never been this close in a vicinity to _any_ celebrity before. Hell, Yuu was being treated exactly like a celebrity himself. Yuu didn’t even want to think about how much this appointment cost his blond CEO lover.

Kouyou was seated next to him in his own chair, his own eyes shut closed comfortably as he allowed the stylists to work on him efficiently. Yuu was extremely _baffled_ and completely amazed by how calm and serene his boyfriend looked. Kouyou sure lived up to his rank as a CEO; he must be _so_ used to seeing famous people all the time and being treated like a king.

Yuu tried to pretend he was cool with everything happening around him, but he had legit just seen that singer sitting across the room from him on television performing an hour ago. How could you possibly remain calm in the presence of such people when your lowly presence just fell flat amidst all of them?!

“Not used to being here, huh?” His make-up artist, a gothic-looking woman with dark purple hair, seemed to pick up on Yuu’s nervousness as she carefully filled in the raven’s eyebrows. “You’re looking everywhere, as if you’re shocked you’re even here.”

Yuu managed a tense laugh, though secretly in his heart he was already weeping in shame. “Um… I didn’t even know I was coming here until thirty minutes ago.”

That earned a low chuckle from Kouyou next to him.

“Well, we’re full-house all the time. Your boyfriend was lucky that when he called to book us last week, we had some last minute cancellations,” His make-up artist continued explaining. “Also, it kinda helps your boyfriend’s the CEO of a big business corporation, and has connections. We’re kinda inclined to help him.”

“You don’t have to put it that way,” Kouyou said with an eyebrow raised, his expression amused.

“Sorry,” The woman laughed, and Yuu watched their playful interactions with one another curiously. Did they know each other personally beforehand? How long had they known each other? It wasn’t like Yuu was jealous or anything – and seeing how Kouyou was in such a high-ranking position, he’d probably have a vast amount of contacts and know a whole bunch of people.

But the only other person Yuu had seen Kouyou interacting regularly with, and on a personal level, was Akira, and he was the only person that had bothered getting to know Yuu better out of concern for the blond CEO, too. Kouyou definitely looked like a people person, but Yuu guessed that Kouyou rarely allowed people to get closer to him on an intimate level, whether it be friendships or relationships.

Kouyou was most likely the type to have plenty of work relationships with his peers, but have little interpersonal relationships with others. And just that knowledge made Yuu smile, knowing that other than Akira, Yuu was probably the only person that mattered to Kouyou in his life.

So, when it came down to it, Yuu _really_ wasn’t jealous about this whole thing. He was just curious about this lady and her association with Kouyou, seeing as how the blond rarely seemed to be on close terms with others.

“Does Kouyou come here regularly?” Yuu asked, playing it off as casual as he could.

“Oh, only when he shows up for important events. This gala’s important. But that happens only like, twice a year. Kouyou doesn’t like to be too fancy,” she answered promptly, and as a matter-of-factly.

Kouyou sighed. “You know, Yuu, I’m right here next to you. You can just ask me.”

“I like to ask other people questions about you,” Yuu scoffed. Kouyou couldn’t help himself from smiling widely at his raven lover’s annoyed stance.

“I have to say, Kouyou sure has great taste,” The make-up artist commented unexpectedly, clucking her tongue as she continued working on Yuu’s face. “I mean, you’re gorgeous. I’ve seen many celebrities, but you’re one hell of a face to work on. Trust me, I’m a make-up artist.”

Yuu felt his cheeks burning up. “Um… Thank you.” He still wasn’t sure whether to take her compliment with a pinch of salt or not. Yuu felt drastically inadequate, in comparison to the many gorgeous human beings currently situated here in this room, so what more other celebrities?

“I _do_ have great taste,” Kouyou chipped in with a laugh, eyes flickering over to scan Yuu’s form. “And I can’t wait till I take him to the event. Everyone will be so jealous of me.”

“Oh, they’ll be _so_ jealous when I’m done with him,” The purple-haired lady claimed smugly, fingers cupping the side of Yuu’s cheek. “Don’t worry, CEO, we’ve got you covered. We’ll make him the fairest of the ball.”

Yuu rolled his eyes, though his lips gradually fixed into a smile. “You guys know I’m right here, right? Am I a Disney princess now?” 

“Babydoll,” Kouyou laughed, grinning to him, lips curving into that god-awful smirk Yuu could never get enough of. “You have always been _my_ princess to me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, I think you guys seem to have gotten the wrong idea about when this story is ending... It's not ending anytime soon, it's just that a long time ago I set a deadline for myself to end this story by early March, but it seems like I can't fulfill that deadline anymore, so I mentioned about that in the last chapter.
> 
> Honestly, with how long I'm dragging this out (can you believe this fic was originally supposed to be a one-shot... which ended up as 19 chapters so far, and counting, hahaha) I don't even know by what chapter it can end, lol.
> 
> I adore your comments and thoughts as usual.
> 
> Flying off tomorrow, so if you want to stay updated with me you can look for me on twitter @sweetlolixo :)
> 
> I love this story to death and I will definitely try to update as much as I can whenever I can, but from now on I have to say that updates are going to be spontaneous. Which means I'm not sure if they will come in a weekly basis, on a daily basis, whatever. If it comes, it comes. It depends on my work schedule from now on :(
> 
> See you guys in a bit :)


	20. Chapter 20

“He’s ready.”

Yuu had never felt more embarrassed in his life.

As his stylist drew open the curtains that had been acting as a makeshift changing room for Yuu, the raven found himself taking a step forward with flaming cheeks, obviously finding the situation a little too… _exaggerated_ , even for his tastes. Clothed in a fully white tuxedo, and a bowtie snugly tied around his neck, Yuu never felt more posh in his life. His make-up had been immaculately done, his hair conditioned, blow-dried and skillfully tied into a small ponytail, and his clothes fit him a _little_ too perfectly around his hips.

And Kouyou’s gaze was completely fixated on him.

Like a husband-to-be seeing his bride for the very first time on their wedding day, Kouyou couldn’t pull his eyes away from the sight of Yuu before him, and just his very stare made Yuu want to further dig a hole and bury himself in it. Oh, _god_. Did Kouyou honestly have to _always_ look at him like that? It was fine when Kouyou did that to him – bestow upon him all those fond gazes – when they were alone, but now they were in the company of several others, and Yuu could hear the amused giggling of his stylist already, standing by the side, enjoying just how adorable the couple before her was acting.

“Stop it,” Yuu muttered, flustered underneath all of the attention, and it took awhile for Kouyou to regain his composure and remember _where_ he was and _what_ he was doing. Currently seated on one of the twirling chairs in the salon, the blond spread his lips into a wide laugh, nodding simply, then beckoned for Yuu to come forward, to come to him.

Yuu obliged, still shy, and as he made his way closer to Kouyou, he took in how handsome Kouyou looked. Already sleekly dressed in his own black tuxedo, the older man had minimal make-up applied on; just enough to emphasise on his strong jawline and his gorgeous, masculine features. The blond’s hair had been styled up to have a little more volume added, but not enough to look overly flashy or too tasteless. Simply put, Kouyou had dressed up to be the embodiment of class and debonair, looking like the perfect gentleman Yuu had always known him to be.

With the blond’s dark eyes gleaming right underneath the salon’s bright lights, Kouyou brought his hands up slowly to cup at Yuu’s cheeks, dazedly admiring his lover before him. The salon staff surrounding them took it as their cue to leave and return to their work, wanting to give the lovebirds some space and romantic time of their own. Yuu felt immensely grateful once they were left alone, and as he let out a sigh of relief once they left, Kouyou visibly chuckled to him.

“My flower,” Kouyou cooed sweetly, reaching over to bring Yuu’s hand into his. And then he was lifting the raven’s hand to his lips, bestowing the raven a kiss against his skin once more. Yuu’s heart fluttered madly at the sight, knowing no matter how many times Kouyou did this little act, he would never tire of it. The older man was so _magical_ – so magically unreal, so out of this world.

“You’ll be my princess for the day, for sure,” Kouyou continued saying, letting out a delighted laugh. “You don’t know how stunning you look, right now.”

Yuu’s lips curved into an abashed smile of their own accord. “You don’t look so bad yourself.” Well – that was sort of a lie. Kouyou looked _perfect_.

Kouyou grinned. “A compliment from the princess – how nice. I just hope you’re fine with going with someone like me to the gala.”

Yuu widened his eyes at his words, not even bothering to keep up with his haughty act anymore. “You’re kidding! I can’t believe _you’re_ taking me to the gala. You’re _so_ …” The raven gawked at Kouyou, making a grand gesture at him. “While I’m so…” Yuu furrowed his brows, pointing back to himself. “I’m _nothing_!”

Kouyou frowned deeply in response, obviously disapproving. “Don’t say that, Yuu.”

“Am I lying?” Yuu huffed, face almost in a pout. Kouyou just sighed and pulled at Yuu’s arms, gesturing for him to take a seat against the blond’s lap on the chair. Yuu obediently listened, snuggling up to Kouyou on his lap, while the older man slithered his arms around Yuu’s waist and warmly embraced him close to him.

“You know you’re the most gorgeous looking thing in the room around here,” Kouyou said in a soft whisper, his lips only a short distance away from Yuu’s ear. “And I don’t want you doubting yourself when you look so heavenly, alright? Let’s make tonight a fun one. It’s your first time going to a gala like this, right?” Yuu stiffly nodded his head. “Then you should be _so_ excited.”

Yuu pouted up to Kouyou. “I _am_ excited!” And then he was sheepishly looking away, his next few words coming out in a low murmur. “I’m most excited that I’m going with _you_.”

Kouyou couldn’t stop smiling, his arms squeezing Yuu in his grasp. “Oh, Yuu. You have no idea what it does to me when you say things like that.”

Yuu broke into a shy giggle. “Does it warm up your cold, dead heart?”

Kouyou grinned, fingers reaching up to the back of Yuu’s neck, caressing him the skin there soothingly. “Do you really think of me as such a zombie?”

Yuu hummed happily. “I can’t help but point out facts about my inhuman boyfriend.”

Kouyou grinned wider, his heart tingling at Yuu’s usage of the word _boyfriend_.

“I think we have to go…” Kouyou said, eyes never peeling away from Yuu’s face. “…before I change my mind and decide to take you home, instead. Because trust me, Yuu, I am _very_ tempted to change my course of plan right now.”

Yuu laughed in reply and nodded, agreeing to leave. But as he began to get up from Kouyou’s lap, it suddenly occurred to him that this would be the perfect time to get the selfie he wanted with Kouyou.

“We have to take selfie of us before we leave!” Yuu exclaimed, rushing to grab for his phone.

Kouyou was momentarily surprised by the outburst, and raised an eyebrow in amusement. “Kids these days…”

Yuu narrowed his eyes at his reply, quickly shooting him a glare. “Well, too bad for you, old man! You’re the one who fell in love with someone a decade younger than you.”

Kouyou frowned when he realized Yuu had taken his words the wrong way. “I didn't mean to offend,” the blond sighed, tugging his younger lover closer to him. “I just find you too cute, that’s all.”

Yuu sulked to him. “You better have meant that!”

“Of course, babydoll,” Kouyou pacified, then leaned his lips over to kiss Yuu endearingly on the head. “You know I’d never get mad at you. Now, let’s take that selfie you wanted before we get too late for the gala.”

They ended up taking a ton of photos on Yuu’s cellphone, but Yuu’s favourite ones were the photos whereby Kouyou’s eyes were looking to him, and only _at_ him, and his lips were pressed up softly against Yuu’s cheek.

~

Oh, _boy_. Just when Yuu thought the surprises of the day were done, it turned out that the salon was only the beginning. Yuu had thought Kouyou would be driving the both of them to the event, but it turned out that the blond had hired a black limousine car to take them both to the gala, and Yuu had _never_ been inside a limousine. He’d seen them in fancy movies, and sometimes if he was lucky – around the city, but he’d _never_ gotten the opportunity to take one.

And here Kouyou was, casually hiring a limousine car for a grand entrance to the gala.

“The windows are tinted,” Kouyou explained, when they got into the car, and Yuu had settled back against the most luxurious car cushions he’d ever sat on in his whole life. “That means the people outside can’t look in and see us. We get our own privacy.”

There was also a drinks counter in the middle, with empty wine glasses and a bunch of expensive, complimentary bottles of liquor they could drink from, but Kouyou made no move to take them.

“We’ll be drinking a lot of wine later, anyway,” Kouyou said with a shrug. “And I don’t want to get us too drunk just yet, and we have so many people to meet.”

Yuu had been nervous about attending this whole gala before, but as they gradually approached their destination, the raven suddenly felt _terrified_. This gala event was clearly far bigger than he thought, and he – someone who had legit no reason to be there, except for being Kouyou’s date – was going. What if he embarrassed himself in front all of Kouyou’s business associates? What if they indulged in long discussions about stock markets and Yuu had _no_ clue what to reply? What if they saw Yuu and thought he was just a child and didn’t belong there with them?

“I’m scared,” Yuu whispered, midway the journey, eyes fearfully turning to Kouyou. The older man was instantly concerned, afraid he’d put Yuu in an uncomfortable position, and he quickly reached a hand over to slip his fingers into Yuu’s palm, squeezing him with reassurance.

“Don’t worry, I’ll always be with you, okay? I promise.”

Yuu just sighed and reluctantly nodded, still unconvinced.

“It’ll be an experience,” Kouyou continued. “And if you feel like you want to go home anytime, just tell me. I’ll take you.”

Yuu bit his lip at that, knowing he’d feel bad if things came to that state. “Okay, Kouyou.”

Kouyou just smiled to him. “I’m so thankful you agreed to be my date for today, Yuu. That already meant a lot. I couldn’t ask for anything more.”

Yuu’s heart galloped, knowing Kouyou had all the reason in the world to always ask for more. With his status, his wealth, and his looks, Kouyou could have _everything_ in the world.

And yet he never ever forced Yuu into a decision he didn’t want to make, and he always placed Yuu’s happiness above his own one, despite how much he might have wanted something else from the raven in return.

~

The windows might be tinted, but that didn’t mean Yuu couldn’t still look out of them to see where they were heading. And when they finally stopped right outside a grand hotel, with a long red carpet lay out the front stairs and a huge crowd of paparazzis standing around with big, flashy-looking cameras, Yuu’s jaw fell.

“No way. Just… _no_ ,” Yuu gaped, backing away quickly from the window. He could already see tons of other attractive men and women stepping out of their own limousines, being ushered onto the red carpet into the crowd, with the many photographers calling out their names and asking them to look their way.

“There’s a red carpet,” Yuu pointed out numbly, still in shock. Kouyou chuckled and nodded, looking out the window.

“Apparently so. I forget that they have these things sometimes,” Kouyou remarked, clucking his tongue as he spoke. “Very interesting. The media always has a field day with these things.”

Yuu folded his arms. “That’s not the point! You didn’t tell me there would be – _people_!”

Kouyou laughed. “Oh, babydoll… What did you think there would be? A litter of puppies?”

Yuu squinted his eyes to him. “You know that’s not what I meant. I mean – I don’t know how to pose or anything! I’m going to look really, really dumb. Is there any way around the stairs?”

Kouyou cocked his head to the side, pretending to be deep in contemplative thought. “Hmm… Well, if you don’t want to climb up the stairs, I could always pick you up into my arms and carry you up. Now _that_ would cause some media attention.”

Yuu pouted in response. “Mister Takashima, you really know how to rile your lover up, don’t you?”

Kouyou grinned. “I only learn from the best – you. Now, we have to leave the limousine soon, because there are a ton more cars coming and it’s rude to hog this space for too long. Are you ready?”

Yuu sucked in a breath. “I don’t think I have a choice at this point in time, do I?”

With one last amused chuckle, Kouyou signaled for the valet to head over to pull the door open for them. Once Kouyou was stepping out of the limousine, all suave and poised with that award-winning smile on his face, all cameras turned their attention to him, instantly recognizing his status as the CEO of one of the top business corporations in the city.

 _Jesus fuck._ Yuu sat in his seat and waited as Kouyou waved to the paparazzi and allowed a few moments for his photo to be taken, before offering a hand to Yuu to help his raven-haired lover out of the limousine. Yuu could hear the paparazzi immediately erupting into confused whispers once they caught sight of Yuu stepping out in his white tux, and the university student felt his face grow hot as he saw reporters furiously scribbling notes down into their notepads, taking in every inch and detail of the sight before them.

The paparazzi most likely had no idea who Yuu was and why he was hanging out with someone of the likes of Kouyou, since technically this would be Yuu and Kouyou’s first official event together. Was Yuu going to end up on tomorrow’s latest gossip piece somehow? Why the hell did Kouyou _not_ warn him about this in advance?

Kouyou could probably sense Yuu was about to end up in a nervous breakdown, for the older man was quickly snaking a protective arm around Yuu’s waist and holding him close in a second, his eyes and lips gazing down and smiling lovingly to Yuu.

Yuu looked to him doe-eyed in return, apprehension and fear plain as day on his face, but Kouyou quietly soothed it by lowering his head and planting a soft kiss against Yuu’s hair – an action that also instantly answered _all_ of the paparazzi’s questions about them.

Knowing that Kouyou wasn’t ashamed to tell the whole world that he was in love with Yuu made the raven feel ten times better about himself, and it was what gave him courage to linger at the front few steps of the stairs, obliging the photographers as they called for their attention and took – what felt like – a million pictures of the couple per second.

_Mr Takashima, look here! Mr Takashima, let me take a good photo of you and your new beau! Mr Takashima, how would you identify your date for the night? Is he affiliated with any of your clients?_

Yuu didn’t think Kouyou would entertain either of their questions, considering he’d kept his silence so far and only smiled graciously in response, and that was why Yuu got startled when Kouyou spontaneously decided to part his lips and introduce the raven beside him.

“His name is Yuu,” Kouyou answered, eyes gazing affectionately down Yuu’s way.

And that was all Kouyou was willing to give.

Yuu thought he would go blind from all the bright white flashes, but after a couple of minutes Kouyou seemed to have had enough and gestured for Yuu to make a move on.

Loosening his arm around Yuu’s waist and preferring to take Yuu’s hand into his instead, Kouyou led Yuu up the stairs with both of their hands locked tight together, an action that filled Yuu’s heart with endless warmth. And as they finally ascended right to the top of the stairs and were greeted by bellboys who pulled the hotel’s glass doors open for them, Yuu looked over to Kouyou and realized he wasn’t afraid of anything anymore, not when Kouyou was right by his side like this, their hearts beating as one.

~

Thankfully, the gala event itself wasn’t as daunting as the red carpet outside. The event was being held in the hotel’s biggest ballroom, and though Yuu was equally amazed by how magnificent and palatial the decorations and set-up was around him, he had long expected something with the likes of this for the gala.

It was still early into the night, but the ballroom was packed already, filled with dolled-up women who wore dresses right out of a fashion runway show, and important-looking men with tuxedos Yuu now knew could cost an average salaryman one year of his wages. Yuu could also recognize a few celebrities mingling here and there, but that was it. The rest of the faces were foreign to him, and Yuu couldn’t help but wonder if Kouyou knew _all_ of them, bearing in mind his connections in the industry.

Kouyou most likely did.

It didn’t take long for people to start noticing Kouyou’s arrival to the gala, and once they did, Yuu could sense people readying themselves to head over to either chat Kouyou up or introduce themselves to him. Kouyou didn’t seem like he cared, though.

The first people to approach them were, of course, the event organizers themselves. A man, either in his fifties or sixties, looking incredibly well groomed for his age with just a greying head of hair, came sauntering over with his wife by his side, looking pleased with Kouyou’s appearance. He also looked slightly surprised by the sight of Yuu standing next to him.

“Takashima! So glad you could make it,” The man, someone who Yuu assumed to be Kouyou’s client, said. “And I see you’ve brought a date! How nice. Care to introduce me and my wife to this gorgeous man?”

Kouyou gave a few laughs in response, nodding his head. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world, Yoshizawa. Tonight, I’ve brought someone very important to me along, and he’s called Yuu.

Yuu, this is a long-time client of mine, Yoshizawa. We’ve known each other for years. And this is his wife, Umeko, if I’m not wrong. It’s nice seeing you again, Umeko.”

Yoshizawa’s wife, who looked to be in her fifties as well, simply smiled and gave a small bow. “Nice to see you again too, Takashima. And nice to meet you, Yuu.”

Yuu thought she looked absolutely beautiful, in her bold red lipstick, and her quiet charm, and the fancy, but modest, evening gown she was donning. She radiated an air of serenity and class, and it was easy to tell she came from a good background from the graceful way she acted.

“It’s an honor to meet you, Yoshizawa, Umeko,” Yuu greeted as politely as he could, afraid he would represent Kouyou poorly if otherwise.

“Ah, nice to meet you, Yuu! You know, even though Kouyou and I have a working relationship, I’ve always treated him as the son that I never had. And lately Kouyou has been looking much happier, and I had guessed it was because of someone new in his life. I’m really happy to meet you, Yuu.” Yoshizawa said, with a proud smile.

“Oh, you’re talking too much again,” Umeko interjected, sighing as she tugged on the arm of her husband. “Don’t embarrass the young people, Yoshi.”

Kouyou shook his head, waving it off. “It’s fine! I’ve always looked up to Yoshizawa in this industry too, and so I’m very honored to hear about his concern for me. Thank you, Yoshizawa.”

“It’s nothing,” Yoshizawa grinned, then abruptly looked rather distracted as he spotted new guests in the distance coming in through the ballroom entrance. “Ah! Looks like new guests have arrived. I must greet them with my wife – I trust you will have many other people to meet, anyway. I’ll see you later in the night!”

“Definitely,” Kouyou agreed, smiling as he bade Yoshizawa goodbye.

Once they left and Kouyou and Yuu had time to themselves once again, Kouyou was turning his head rather excitedly and inquisitively to Yuu.

“So, how was it?” Kouyou asked, with a curious smile. “The meeting.”

“They seem like very nice people,” Yuu answered, looking back over his shoulder to Yoshizawa and Umeko, who were already cheerfully engaged in another conversation with other guests. “And Yoshizawa was very sweet about the whole meeting me thing. He seems pretty close to you.”

“Oh, it’s purely a working relationship,” Kouyou cleared up hastily. “But we’ve worked long enough with each other to know about each other’s lives and personalities. In a way, I guess we’ve developed some sort of mutual trust and concern for each other. I might have mentioned about you once or twice in my last meeting with him, as well.”

Yuu smiled teasingly to him with those words. “Oh? So you’ve been talking about me to your clients.”

Kouyou chuckled, then reached a hand over to play lightly with Yuu’s hair. “ _May_ -be. I just can’t resist talking about you every now and then, you know. You make me so happy.”

Yuu made a cute face then, scrunching his nose up adorably to the blond. “You’re _so_ annoying. I wonder how I’m not creeped out by you yet.”

Kouyou pinched playfully at his cheeks. “Would you run away from me, Yuu? After all I’ve done for you?”

Yuu smiled to him innocently. “Hm… Maybe it’s not enough.”

“Do I have to buy you a house next?” Kouyou asked, laughing.

Yuu cocked an eyebrow up at the suggestion. “You would buy me a house, _really_?”

“Well… On the condition you live with me,” Kouyou answered sweetly, a twinkle in his eye as he spoke. “Not all things can come for free, can it?”

It sounded like a completely crazy idea, but… Yuu _liked_ it.

The raven’s heart trepidated at the thought of sharing a home with Kouyou. It had never crossed his mind, but now that he was giving some serious thought about it, he could imagine lounging on the sofa with Kouyou in their free time, and cuddling up to each other until they fell asleep. He could imagine having dinner every night together, where they would cook mostly, and only head out to expensive restaurants to dine every other night whenever they felt like it. He could imagine kissing Kouyou any time he ever so wished, and he could imagine mewling and begging for attention from the blond whenever he was in need of some pampering. He could also imagine hearing Kouyou call him his flower or babydoll every moment of the day…

Yuu could actually imagine a future with Kouyou – and he _liked_ it.

They’d barely known each other for a month, but things were advancing so quickly, it felt as if they’d already known each other for a much longer time. Was it even possible to fall in love with a person this quick? Was it right to fantasize about a future with someone you’d just met?

Was it _dangerous_ to do so?

Was it dangerous to give your heart away so freely like this?

Noticing Yuu had gone quiet into thought, Kouyou hurried to dispel any doubts the raven might have about him.

“I was just joking,” Kouyou said softly, eyes gazing anxiously into Yuu’s ones. “I wasn’t serious, alright? I hope I didn’t scare you in any way.”

Yuu looked up to him, his heart still pounding loudly as he spoke. “But you meant it. Right? You want to be with me.”

“Of course!” Kouyou affirmed, seemingly upset Yuu would ever think otherwise about him.

“I want to be with you every single moment of the day, Yuu. But I’d never do anything you didn’t want to do. And I’m really afraid you might misunderstand my words, or what I do, but I – at the end of the day, I’m thinking about you, alright? I’m thinking of you. I love you.”

 _I love you, so much, too,_ Yuu thought, but the words never left his lips.

Not now. Not yet. It just didn’t feel like the right time, and it didn’t feel like everything had fallen properly into place yet. Kouyou deserved his kisses, and his embraces, and his body; and Yuu was even willing to call Kouyou his _boyfriend_ , but Yuu just wasn’t sure it was time to say _I love you_ to Kouyou yet. Even though he did, _god_ , Yuu loved Kouyou so, so much.

But the thought of making his love known to Kouyou, the thought of giving Kouyou such power – Yuu wasn’t sure he was ready, yet. Because it’d been such a long time since Yuu had fallen in love, and it’d been such a long time since Yuu had decided to place his trust and faith in someone else like this. And he wasn’t sure he was ready to, now. He was still that little bit frightened.

All Yuu needed was just a little more time.

“Maybe one day,” Yuu said quietly, his eyes staring up to Kouyou hopefully. “Maybe one day we’ll live together, and everything will be perfect. Maybe – I don’t know, Kouyou, but – but thinking about it makes me happy, and I don’t know what to feel about this. I – I think it’s bad, _god_ , it’s so bad how fast this all is. But I… I’m happy. With you. And that’s all that matters.”

Kouyou smiled gratefully to him, his own heart racing madly in his chest.

“I’m so happy to hear you say these things, Yuu,” Kouyou spoke gently, hands cupping the sides of Yuu’s face tenderly. “Like I said before – you don’t know what your words do to me. I’m not even sure this happiness I feel is measurable,” he laughed, shaking his head. “I’m pretty sure if they ran emotional tests on me, I’d break the happy-o-meter, or something.”

Yuu’s cheeks turned peach pink. “Do I really not say these things more often? I thought I was sweet enough to you.”

“Oh, of course, babydoll. You’re always heavenly to me,” A sigh of admiration slipped out from Kouyou. “I just get extra happy when you tell me more about your honest feelings, that’s all. Because there’s kissing and hugging, and there’s teasing and playing, but then there’s also being honest with each other and talking about our future dreams and hopes for each other, with each other. And all of it is important to me. It matters to me. As long as it’s with you.”

Yuu averted his gaze shyly away from Kouyou. “Now you’re being borderline embarrassing.”

“ _Oh_ , but you like it. Don’t you?” Kouyou teased, winking slyly to the raven.

Yuu simply laughed, then took a step in closer to envelop Kouyou into a tight hug.

“Of course I like it,” Yuu finally admitted, for the first time, eyes closing as he basked in the embrace with Kouyou. “I love how you’re so perfect to me. I love how you’re always honest with me. I love how you never let me down. I love everything about you.”

Kouyou looked positively radiant at his words, but there seemed to be something else that he was waiting for.

Yuu knew exactly what it was.

“And… do you love me?” Kouyou asked quietly, his question hanging sharply in the air. Though Kouyou was perfectly calm and poised as usual, never giving away any flaws or holes in his gentlemanly façade, Yuu could tell Kouyou was nervous as he asked this.

The older man, the CEO, the person who had hundreds of people right underneath his control – he was suddenly restless, anxious, insecure; his gaze sweeping over Yuu’s face unconfidently as he asked the million dollar question; his lips quivering worriedly as he spoke.

And his eyes, his beautiful dimly lit eyes, had never looked more fearful for Yuu’s answer.

The only thing was, Yuu didn’t have one to give.

But then another couple was quickly approaching them to introduce themselves, and Yuu had never felt more thankful for human interaction in his life. The subject between Yuu and Kouyou was quickly dropped, though Yuu could sense Kouyou still hadn’t thrown the topic aside in his head. Yuu was certain Kouyou wouldn’t back down until he got a solid reply, either. And perhaps Kouyou would question him later, or another day, or again, and again; but Yuu knew that no matter what, or when, or _how,_ he had to decide on a proper answer to give to the blond soon.

He couldn’t just leave Kouyou waiting like this – without an answer, completely silent on Yuu’s end, with pieces of the older man’s heart left scattered in the open for Yuu to take but never reciprocate.

He just couldn’t do that to Kouyou.


	21. Chapter 21

Yuu knew Kouyou was most likely well known in the industry, considering he was a CEO and all – but he did not realize Kouyou was _this_ famous. He’d clearly underestimated his boyfriend’s potential, for they spent the subsequent two hours introducing and re-introducing themselves over and over again to many, many business associates and their wives or husbands, as well as the occasional celebrity that Kouyou _also_ knew.

Needless to say, Yuu was exhausted. It was tough enough being a CEO, having to run a company all on your own; but watching Kouyou put on his smiling face and network with all these other people and laugh at jokes that Yuu didn’t even get himself… Yuu didn’t understand how the blond did it.

And maybe, in a way, Yuu understood now why Kouyou wanted to have Yuu so desperately as his date on this night. Because Yuu couldn’t imagine Kouyou having to go through this all on his own, filled in a room where people flaunted their assets and wealth and significant other _and_ whatever else they could come up with that displayed their status.

Yuu was familiar enough with having to put on facades when it came to sugar dating, but Kouyou was taking it to a whole new level. And each time a couple left their company and a new pair approached them, Yuu clutched at Kouyou’s arm just a little tighter, wanting to bring Kouyou all the comfort he needed. He wanted to let Kouyou know that the raven-haired was here, silently supporting him, and that the blond needn’t ever be alone. Because even as smooth and charismatic Kouyou was being, conversing with all these important associates, Yuu knew Kouyou was human too.

And Yuu was here to let that human know he could fall back on Yuu anytime.

When it came down to it, Yuu just felt a need to protect Kouyou, exactly like how Kouyou had always been protecting Yuu in any way possible. Yuu just hoped Kouyou could feel _that_ – feel how Yuu was trying so hard for Kouyou, too.

It felt like forever, but after a long while of talking (well, it was Kouyou doing most of the talking – Yuu just watched and smiled and nodded like the good, supportive partner he was), Kouyou turned to Yuu with a weary look and appeared to have had enough.

“Tired?” Yuu asked, concerned. “Maybe we should go get some drinks.”

“Maybe we should,” Kouyou agreed, sighing.

They stalked over to the drinks bar by the side of the ballroom, and as Yuu moved to pour the both of them glasses of wine, Kouyou watched him with a fond gaze, smiling as Yuu helpfully offered a glass to him.

“What?” Yuu asked.

“Nothing,” Kouyou smiled warmly, taking Yuu’s glass into his hand, and immediately gulping all the wine hurriedly down his throat. His face twisted into a pained look after, earning him an instant giggle from the raven.

“Are you _that_ thirsty?” Yuu laughed. “Just so you know, I’m not dragging your drunk ass home.”

“It’s not like I get drunk that easily,” Kouyou protested, pushing his glass towards Yuu for more. “Could I get a re-fill?”

Yuu snorted. “Of course, Mr Takashima,” the raven made a small bow. “A glass of wine, coming right up.”

“I didn’t know your status had downgraded from boyfriend to waiter so fast,” a familiar voice said from behind, and Yuu was immediately jolting up, recognizing the owner of that voice quickly.

“Yo, Akira, you made it!” Kouyou laughed deliriously, waving to his colleague standing behind the raven. Yuu narrowed his eyes to his boyfriend. “I’m not drunk, I swear.”

“Kouyou’s going crazy!” Yuu pouted, before turning around to greet Akira.

Akira was, of course, smartly dressed in a black tuxedo, just like Kouyou; looking like proper big-shot representatives of their company, embodying the class and charm of a gentleman at the same time. Holding his own wine glass at hand, Akira twirled it around his fingers mindlessly in a seemingly bored state as his eyes darted from Yuu back to Kouyou.

“You do know there are waiters walking around giving out glasses of wine, right? You don’t really have to do this yourselves.”

Kouyou smirked. “Well, Yuu was being so generous to offer his services, so I couldn’t exactly turn that down. I mean – my boyfriend’s acting like such a housewife to me, it’s such a lovely sight to behold.”

Yuu released a fatigued sigh, too tired to argue with the blond. “It’s your fault you’re going around talking to all these people. I get worried for you too, you know!”

Kouyou’s eyes lit up in surprise, having not expected Yuu’s concern. “Oh?”

“Looks like you're worrying your wife,” Akira teased, reducing Kouyou to sappy, lovesick smiles for the raven. “Ah… How nice would it be if I had one to care for me, too.”

Yuu scoffed at his statement. “Don’t you have Takanori? Speaking of… he’s not here? You didn’t invite him?”

Akira raised an eyebrow, as if shocked by the accusation, and shook his head. “Oh, sweetheart, I’ve known your friend for less than a week. I think he would freak out if I invited him to a gala out of nowhere.”

Yuu turned to Kouyou _very_ slowly and suspiciously as Akira’s words gradually settled down into him. “Um… well, Kouyou kissed me in two days.”

Kouyou let out a loud laugh. “Oh, right.”

Akira shrugged at his words. “I’m not like CEO here who was clearly _really_ sexually deprived. I don’t blame him though, so hey. You do you, Kouyou.”

Yuu side-eyed his lover. “Anyway, Akira… I bet Takanori would have been so excited to attend! I doubt he’d care about the fact that he has only known you for less than a week.”

“Oh, well, it just didn’t feel right,” Akira brushed it off. “Maybe next time. I mean, there are a ton of galas every year, you know. It just so happens that CEO right here doesn’t bother attending any of them, and always leaves me to fend for myself whenever I have to attend those events as a representative of our company.”

Kouyou coughed purposefully. “Correction, I’m _way_ too busy to go. There’s a fine difference between having to work, and then not wanting to go, in case you didn’t know.”

“Oh, come on, you hate these things,” Akira laughed, pointing out.

Kouyou frowned. “That _may_ be true. But Yuu’s here tonight, so that makes a whole lot of difference. I’m actually glad to be here, for one.” And then that silly smile was back on his face once more, as his eyes turned to look at Yuu.

Yuu briefly smiled at the gesture, and bowed his head slightly. “I’m glad to be at your service.”

Kouyou’s heart almost melted at his response, realizing the raven was suddenly ceasing in his teasing of the blond. “See? I can’t complain with such an adorable wife- I mean, uh, date.”

Yuu made a face at his usage of words, but Kouyou just grinned pridefully back to him.

“You guys are literally making me nauseous,” Akira sighed, shaking his head to the couple before him. “Anyway, Kouyou, I met with Mazaki earlier on and I believe he was looking forward to meeting you. Remember the collaboration we’re planning to do in a few months’ time? I believe he has some things he wishes to discuss with you.”

Kouyou’s face paled at the thought of having to meet with more associates. “Right. I hadn’t seen him around yet. I should go talk to him.”

“I think he was last seen near the stage area,” Akira tipped.

Kouyou nodded. “I guess I’ll go then. Yuu, is it okay if you stay with Akira for a while? I think you’ve had enough of lingering around all these people, so I’ll be right back.”

“Yep!” Yuu hurriedly assured, smiling widely to his blond lover. “I’ll stay right here! Promise.”

“Okay,” Kouyou looked disconcertingly back to Akira. “Take care of Yuu for me.”

Akira gave a convincing nod, waving the other man off. “You’ll only take like ten minutes, stop being so dramatic.”

Yuu couldn’t help but giggle at what Akira said – the brunet was right. Kouyou really was always so overly concerned when it came to Yuu, wasn’t he?

“I’ll be fine, I promise,” Yuu mewled in a cute voice, smiling up to Kouyou. Kouyou smiled back rather infatuatedly.

“I love you,” Kouyou mouthed in a last whisper, before finally bearing to part from Yuu’s side.

Once he was gone, Akira shook his head and broke into low, amused chuckles.

“Nice to know you told Kouyou,” Akira said, raising his glass up to the raven. “About your name. I’ve noticed he has stopped calling you Aoi. You look good, by the way. White’s a great color on you. I’m guessing Kouyou chose the tux.”

Yuu smiled, swaying the wine glass he had in his hand to himself. “Thank you, Kouyou chose it for me. And yeah… I guess I had to tell him about my name. I told him yesterday. I couldn’t keep it from him anymore.”

“And I’m guessing he reacted well?” Akira questioned, intrigued. “Didn’t seem like he was mad at you for anything.”

Yuu nodded. “He didn’t get mad at all! Kouyou was really sweet about it, and he said it didn’t matter what name I was called. But he was still really happy I chose to tell him my real name.”

Akira registered his words calmly. “I see. That’s good. I had thought Kouyou would have reacted perhaps a little more strongly, but knowing that it didn’t bother him at all makes me feel at ease. Perhaps he really can’t bring himself to get mad at you at all.”

Yuu’s face turned pink at the thought. “I sure hope so. Kouyou has never… He has never treated me badly. On the contrary, I’m starting to feel as if _I’m_ the one that’s being mean to him all the time.”

Akira emitted a laugh. “It’s funny how Kouyou can run a huge company, _and_ at the same time get so beaten up about his young raven-haired lover. I guess we both know who has gotten who wrapped around their fingertips.”

Yuu spread his lips into an innocent smile. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

They drank a couple more sips of their wine, leaning back against the drinks counter and taking in the busy crowd before them; when the lights in the ballroom suddenly dimmed, giving an overall cosier feeling to the whole gala.

“How romantic,” Akira remarked, watching as pink and purple lights were being slowly illuminated against the white curtains, in the background of the room. “I guess they’re finally starting the event. With a dance or performance or something.”

Yuu scanned the room worriedly as the loud chatter of the crowd progressively died down. “Where’s Kouyou? Has it been longer than ten minutes?”

Akira chuckled. “He’ll be fine. These discussions can go on forever, but now that things are happening, he’ll probably cut the conversation short and come back. He’s a CEO, remember? He’s quite ruthless in the way he handles things.”

“Oh, well then…” Yuu sighed and took another small sip of his wine. “I just hope he comes back soon. It feels strange not having him here next to me.”

Akira laughed. “Why, is my company so bad? I thought I made quite interesting company.” But before Yuu could protest and clarify that he didn’t mean it that way, Akira’s eyes were diverting across the room to a certain sight, his face falling into a frown as he did so.

“Look who’s here.”

Confused, the raven-haired followed Akira’s gaze. His eyes landed back upon Kouyou’s familiar figure – except the blond wasn’t alone. He was standing in the presence of a much older man, with a younger, alluring-looking woman by his side, a white fur shawl draped around her shoulders, dressed in a long black bodycon dress. With her pouty lips lined with dark lipstick, and her long dark hair trailing down her back in curls, she looked  _just_ like a sultry vampiress. And the very way her lips broke into forced laughter; as well as the sensual way she was gazing up to Kouyou right now, just rubbed Yuu off the wrong way.

The worst thing was, Kouyou was chuckling back. And as the blond drank from his glass of wine and continued conversing with his company, Yuu realized how perfectly Kouyou fit into the whole picture – without Yuu next to him. Kouyou was rich, charming, sophisticated, and _so_ good-looking, for god’s sake. He could carry a whole conversation on his own, and he could understand all these corporate jokes, _and_ there were an endless amount of people that were dying for just one chance to introduce themselves to him.

Kouyou never needed Yuu to be here in the first place.

“Christine Tsutomu,” Akira muttered, and his voice pulled Yuu momentarily out of his thoughts. _Right_. Akira was still standing here with him, awaiting Kouyou’s return.

“That woman?” Yuu asked, feeling his gut twist further as he watched Kouyou laugh at something else the woman seemed to be saying.

“Yes. She’s Christine,” Akira paused, sounding hesitant to elaborate more.

Christine wasn’t just an ordinary business associate or celebrity, judging by the way Akira was reacting so bitterly about this. Yuu knew she meant so much more… and the raven already had his suspicions. He just had no idea how to feel about this.

“She’s Kouyou’s ex-girlfriend,” Yuu surmised. “Isn’t she? She’s the daughter of his client. And the older man standing next to her is her father.”

Akira nodded. “You’re right. I’m pretty sure this is the first time they’ve seen each other since the break-up, and I’m quite surprised how friendly they are getting along with each other.”

Yuu snorted. “Friendly? Christine looks like she wants to eat Kouyou right up. I thought they ended on bad terms.”

The brunet frowned at his words. “They did fight, yes, but they ended on amicable terms. But it was more of a, ‘I guess I’ll see you around if I have to’ kind of thing. But to tell you the honest truth, I didn’t have a good impression of her after the whole incident. For months, it felt as if something she’d said had wrecked Kouyou entirely – and Kouyou just stopped being himself, for a while. It wasn’t only loneliness… He was starting to doubt himself, and as his close friend, it was really hard for me to witness that. That’s why I’m really glad…”

Akira looked over gratefully to Yuu. “I’m really glad he has found you. Because you really do make him happy, whereas Christine… Christine was another case, altogether.”

His words weren’t enough to relieve Yuu’s doubts, though.

Yuu bit his lip harder with every second, eyes unable to tear away from the sight of Kouyou and Christine laughing with each other. He could feel a pressure building in his chest, and his heart was starting to hurt so much it felt like it would burst from emotion. Sure, Akira said all these nice things about Yuu making Kouyou happy in a way that he has never been before, but right here, right now, Yuu didn’t feel _needed_ , not at all, when Kouyou was looking so happy with Christine by his side. And she was so much prettier, too, in all of her thick make-up, and permed hair, and her expensive-looking white shawl.

Yuu briefly imagined Kouyou taking her delicate body into his arms and bringing her to bed, just like how he used to do with her so many times before, and the very mental image _wrecked_ him. To think of Kouyou holding someone else in his arms – just like how he’d done so many times with Yuu, too – made the raven-haired unbearably sad, his chest constricting like never before, and he didn’t know what to do with this foreign feeling of heartbreak.

“Why won’t he stop talking to her?” Yuu hissed angrily, head snapping away from their direction. Akira could sense the raven’s sudden spike in temperament, and was slowly growing concerned for the younger man. “He said he wouldn’t take long! But he’s laughing and he’s having so much fun talking to her.”

“He’s just talking to her,” Akira rushed to pacify the raven, knowing the younger man was bound to think astray. “Yuu, it’s nothing more. Kouyou has always been so courteous and chivalrous, you know. He puts on all these smiles and facades for everybody. It’s just what you have to do as a CEO.”

Yuu wasn’t convinced. “I’m mad.”

“Oh, sweetheart,” Akira sighed understandably to him, knowing Yuu had all the reason in the world to be jealous at his age. “I’m sure he’ll return to your side any moment now. How about we get some food to eat, hm? And later, when Kouyou gets back, you can ask him all about Christine. I’m sure he’ll tell you he was doing nothing more but making an effort to remain on cordial terms with her.”

Yuu evidently sulked. “He better,” the raven said, making a move to reach for the plate of appetizers lying on the table. It was at that moment that the beautiful, melodious sounds of strings started flooding in the background, and Yuu’s attention was slowly being re-directed back to the stage area, where a group of violinists seemed to have gathered around to orchestrate a piece.

“What’s going on?” Yuu asked, watching as the guests in the ballroom cleared hastily to the sides of the room to make space for the middle.

“There seems to be a dance,” Akira was puzzled himself. “They didn’t mention this earlier. But they’re playing Bach’s ‘Air’, and I don’t think you can do anything else with classical music. Oh, look – couples are already gathering to dance.”

He was right. One by one, couples stepped onto the dance floor, enjoying the little surprise dance segment of the evening. And Yuu had never felt more alone, his face growing with envy at the sight before him. The raven’s eyes travelled longingly across the room again to search for his blond lover, but when he finally found him, Yuu gripped his wine glass so hard in his hand it threatened to break.

“He’s still with her,” Yuu moaned, feeling absolutely sick to the stomach.

Christine’s father appeared to be gesturing to both his daughter and Kouyou and pointing them to the dance floor, and as the violinists in the back played a particular long, melancholy note, gliding their strings down sorrowfully, Yuu’s heart dropped to the floor as he witnessed Kouyou extending a hand graciously out to Christine.

 _But I love you._ And there was nothing else running through Yuu’s head right now, but these four words, telling him things Yuu had already know – but couldn’t bring himself to accept – since so long ago.

_But I love you, Takashima Kouyou. You can’t do this to me._

“It doesn’t mean anything,” Akira hurriedly said, but Yuu could already feel the tears springing to his eyes.

_But I love you._

_~_

“I’m going home,” Yuu choked out, bitter bile rising up his throat, teary eyes turning to the floor. “I can’t believe he would do this to me. And all of his _stupid_ lies about needing me to accompany him to this dumb gala. It was all just to feed his ego, wasn’t it? He didn’t even need me here. I can’t believe him.”

Akira, on his end, was at a huge loss of what to do. He wasn’t in a position to offer too much emotional comfort, and yet he was bewildered himself over Kouyou’s actions. As a best friend of the blond, Akira could vouch for Kouyou’s loyalty. But as a bystander of the current events, Akira could understand why Yuu’s heart was breaking at the sight of Kouyou spending time with his ex-girlfriend.

Regardless of the reason, Akira didn’t like seeing anyone dissolve into tears like this – especially not pretty young things like Yuu.

“Kouyou’s not the type to have a change of heart so easily,” Akira comforted gently, but Yuu just shook his head and wiped at his eyes, shielding his tears with his long hair by quickly untying his small ponytail.

“I’m leaving,” Yuu declared irately, turning on his heels and impulsively deciding to go. Akira watched the raven’s leaving back with an undecided heart, eventually resolving to follow quietly, knowing he wouldn’t feel good if he left his best friend’s lover unattended in his heartbroken state.

“And don’t follow me!” Yuu snapped, hearing Akira’s solemn footsteps start to follow behind him.

Akira sighed, knowing he had no heart to defy him.

“I’ll just be right here if you need me,” Akira offered loudly, his own heart sinking as Yuu left the ballroom in a flurry.

Turning his attention back to the dance floor, it surprised him to see it void of Kouyou’s presence. And after spending a good couple of minutes trying to search for the blond CEO in the room, Akira jumped up when he felt a light tap on his shoulder, calling his name.

“Where’s Yuu?” Came Kouyou’s voice, his hands spinning Akira around to face him.

Akira sighed deeply as he lay eyes upon his friend. “I thought you were going to dance with Christine.”

Kouyou’s lips curved into a frown. “Her father suggested it, yes, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it, after all. I thought I would have the first dance with Yuu. Speaking of, where is he? Why isn’t he with you?”

Akira cast his eyes away. “He left. He saw you with Christine and got upset,” He answered quietly. “Kouyou, I’m not sure how you’re going to get out of this one. He was in tears.”

Kouyou’s face turned white, aghast with horror that Yuu had been crying because of him. Then, without a word, he was dashing out of the ballroom, desperate to catch Yuu in time.

~

Yuu found himself navigating the hallways of the hotel aimlessly, attempting futilely to blink away the tears gathering around his eyes. It was getting harder and harder for him to see clearly, when everything was blurring, and the only thing he could see and feel was the throbbing heartache burning in his chest. Yuu hadn’t ever felt like he wasn’t good enough for anyone in the longest time, but being surrounded by people in an event fit only for those belonging to an upperclass society did _wonders_ for an average person’s self-esteem.

It wasn’t even the fact that Kouyou had spent half his time with Christine that irked Yuu so bad – it was how _good_ he looked with her. Kouyou was so tall, so handsome, so _perfect_ , with his refined accent, his polished manner of speaking, and even the casual way he conducted himself was so – _so_ different from Yuu.

And, when Kouyou stood next to Christine, the wealthy and attractive daughter of a client of his, someone who could probably easily speak in the same tongues as him; someone who probably ran in the same circles as him; someone who probably understood every little inch of Kouyou’s universe… Yuu knew that he was nothing compared to Christine. She was the ideal match; the type of person that was worthy of someone like Kouyou.

She wasn’t Yuu.

 _For a period I always thought he’d marry her, considering she seemed like the ultimate perfect match._ That was what Akira had said, hadn’t he? Yuu hadn’t understood at that point in time, but he definitely understood what meant now. Christine was _everything_ Yuu wasn’t. And everything that Yuu wouldn’t ever be. Kouyou had engaged Yuu for his services, for god’s sake. Kouyou had met Yuu over a sugar dating website. It wasn’t even supposed to be an official relationship – it was only supposed to be an arrangement for them.

Kouyou had only been seeking an arrangement. Kouyou hadn’t been seeking for _love_.

But it was all Kouyou’s fault that Yuu had fallen so deep, now. Yuu had fallen in love. And Yuu cursed it, Yuu _hated_ it, Yuu wanted this heartache gone. He had thought himself to be clever, to have carefully guarded his heart away from the blond, he had thought Kouyou to be foolish to have allowed Yuu to gain such a control over him; but at the end of the day, Yuu knew he wasn’t the real holder of the stakes here.

Kouyou had won his heart from day one. Kouyou was the one who held _all_ the cards in his hand from the start.

And now, the very thought of Kouyou leaving Yuu for another was making it hard for the raven to even breathe. It felt as if someone had tore his heart out from his chest and left him for dead. It felt as if this excruciating pain would never go away, and Yuu didn’t know how to solve it. He didn’t know if he could _ever_ solve it.

 _But I love you_ _so much._

~

Yuu managed to locate the lifts nearby, after spending a considerable amount of time getting lost in the hallways and fumbling around with his hands across the walls, trying to locate where he was going with his eyes in a clouded state. Yuu just wanted to go home and bawl it all out, and pretend this whole arrangement between him and Kouyou hadn’t happened at all. He jammed his fingers harshly against the lift buttons, impatiently waiting for the lift to arrive.

Yuu thought he could simply take the lift and go home, but when the lift doors finally opened, it was to his luck that he made out the familiar silhouette of Kouyou’s figure stepping out, proving just how Yuu could never escape from the blond. Kouyou would always find him, wouldn’t he? Kouyou always found him, no matter what. Yuu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry over that fact.

“Yuu…” Kouyou was quickly calling out, rushing forward to pull the raven into his arms. He looked worried sick for the younger man, but Yuu couldn’t bring himself to care about how Kouyou felt right now. Yuu started to thrash and squirm in a bid to escape, but he was weak in Kouyou’s hold, and the tears wouldn’t stop running down his cheeks.

Yuu couldn’t find his voice, even as he tried to part his lips to verbally abuse the man he was so desperately in love with. And all he could do was swallow down his tears down and sob wordlessly, finding himself giving in too easily to Kouyou’s embrace, his fingers digging into the front of Kouyou’s tux and clutching it close for comfort.

“I’ve been looking everywhere for you. You should have stayed and waited for me to explain,” Kouyou whispered, his voice in a gentle lull. Yuu hated how much it soothed him instantly. “You know I would never do anything to hurt you. I couldn’t get out of that conversation with Christine, alright? Her father’s a very important client of mine. I’m really sorry you misunderstood.”

Yuu hated how believable Kouyou’s words were. Yuu hated how much he could give in to Kouyou so easily. Yuu hated how much he loved Kouyou to the point where he would accept _anything_ from the older man right now. Any reason, any explanation, as long as Kouyou told him he still loved him.

“My… heart… shattered… into… a… million… pieces… seeing… you… there,” Yuu cried out, and it was a wonder Kouyou could still understand him when the raven was heaving and wheezing so much in his violent barrage of tears. The blond stroked Yuu’s back soothingly as the younger man sobbed into Kouyou’s chest painfully, with Kouyou’s own heart crushing at the sight of Yuu like this. It was the first time he had seen Yuu in such an emotionally devastated state, and to know that Kouyou was the cause of it filled the blond with an abundance of guilt.

“Babydoll, I don’t love her anymore,” Kouyou said softly, fingers caressing Yuu’s hair comfortingly. “I can’t, Yuu. My heart belongs to you, and you only. You know I’m not lying when I tell you this. You know I’ve never lied to you.”

Yuu hated how he knew Kouyou was telling the truth.

“But you asked her to dance with you,” Yuu sobbed out. “How could you do that to _me_?” Because watching Kouyou extend an invitation like that to his ex made Yuu second-guess everything Kouyou had ever said to him, and had broken Yuu’s heart entirely in a snap. Because Yuu had never thought Kouyou would choose someone over him, and watching Kouyou do just that challenged every notion Yuu had ever held about Kouyou.

Because in that split second, Yuu felt like he didn’t even _exist_. Like Kouyou had conveniently forgotten about him, in exchange for someone ten times _better_ than him.

Kouyou was extremely apologetic in his reply. “I’m sorry, Yuu. I was pressured by her father to do so, but I realized I couldn’t, after all. I went to look for you – I wanted to be with you, instead. I missed you. I couldn’t… Yuu, I would never let anyone take priority over you, you have to believe me.”

_I believe you._

It was funny how fast Yuu succumbed to his sugared words, and it was funny how easily Yuu was inclined to believe him. Because Kouyou had never once proven to have lied before to the raven, and Yuu didn’t think the blond would ever do that to him.

Yuu rubbed sorely at his eyes, visibly calming down after Kouyou’s explanation. “Is that the truth?”

“Yes,” Kouyou was eager to affirm, kissing Yuu tenderly against the head. “I promise. With all my heart. I’ll never let you leave my side again. I’ll take you anywhere I go.”

Yuu couldn’t resist a small smile after that, his rapidly beating heart slowly settling down at his words. “That would be really creepy, Kouyou…”

Kouyou managed a laugh. “Perhaps. Maybe. It would.”

Yuu smiled softly to himself, eyes fluttering close as he spoke. “But… you looked so perfect with her. She’s… very pretty.”

Kouyou made a low hum of disapproval. “She’s attractive, yes. But Yuu, you’re so much more stunning. And if she could have met you, she would have been jealous of you, too.”

Yuu found that hard to believe. “She’s rich, and she’s pretty, and she can probably make boring small talk with all your business associates. She’s… just like you. And I’m not. I’m _nothing_. I’m just…”

Kouyou let out a vexed sigh. “Yuu, you’re everything. Alright? And frankly, I don’t care how many business associates she can talk to. I don’t care about what she can do. I care about you, Yuu. I care about how beautiful you are. I care about how happy you make me. I can give less of a fuck what your background is. Because at the end of the day, you’re talking to _me_. You’re spending time with _me_. Not all these other old men. Not people you don’t need to get yourself involved with. You’re my lover, Yuu, not a secretary.”

Yuu’s heart lifted happily at his words. Now that Kouyou painted the picture like that… “I didn’t think of it in that way.”

“That’s because you’re young and you jump to conclusions too quickly,” Kouyou chided, but he made sure to do it in a teasing manner, gently enough to let Yuu know he was just playing with him. “Don’t scare me like that ever again, alright? I’m so upset I made you cry. You don’t know how much it pains me to see you like this, because of me.”

Yuu’s smile grew wider. “You always know how to sweet-talk to me, don’t you?”

Kouyou bent his head down slightly and kissed him atop his forehead.

“I’m not sweet-talking, I’m telling the truth,” Kouyou laughed, squeezing Yuu’s body in his grasp. “And you’re not allowed to run away before I can explain myself ever again, alright? I don’t want you to get upset over something that’s not even there.”

Yuu nodded his head shyly, then tipped up on his toes excitedly and pressed his lips right up against Kouyou’s ones. He kissed the blond softly, enough to convey his gratitude to him, stupefying the older man for a moment; before pulling away, with Yuu’s moist, teary eyes gazing back up into Kouyou’s startled ones.

“I love you,” Yuu blurted out, watching with a smile as Kouyou’s face went into shock at his sudden confession. “And I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you earlier. But looking at you and Christine together – I – I couldn’t think of anything else. I love you, Takashima Kouyou. And I don’t want you to be with anyone else, just because I couldn’t tell you this earlier. I got so scared – that I wasn’t good enough, that you could so easily leave me for someone else. And I’ve been keeping this to myself for so long, but I _need_ to let you know I love you, Kouyou. I love you, just like how you love me.

And I don’t know how to describe this feeling in my chest, but just know that everytime you’re away from me, everything hurts. And I want to see you again. And I want to annoy you again. I want to be around you all day. I want to be the only one you kiss and pamper. I want to be _your_ only one. I feel everything I do right now, because of you. I love you.”

Kouyou went quiet for long while, his heart trepidating hard in his chest, Yuu’s words reverberating around in the silence. Yuu waited patiently for his reaction, slightly nervous, expecting Kouyou to reply with some sappy remark as he usually did, but it looked like the blond was _always_ full of surprises.

“I heart you too,” was all Kouyou said, after awhile, teasing the raven, and Yuu felt blood flow rapidly in his cheeks at his reply, causing the raven’s face to turn as red as ever. “My pretty, little flower.” But Kouyou couldn’t stop smiling, and it looked as if his cheeks would burst from how wide he was grinning.

It warmed Yuu’s heart.

“I’m so happy,” Kouyou whispered delightedly to the raven, and then he was sliding his arms around Yuu’s waist and hoisting him up into the air, lifting him a couple inches off the ground. Yuu laughed at the childish act, and reciprocated as Kouyou lowered him only slightly to kiss Yuu gently on the lips. “I’m so happy to hear that from you, Yuu. I’m not sure I’m really awake right now, but I’m so happy.”

“You’re being embarrassing again,” Yuu moaned, but he was thrilled he’d finally done something right for the blond. That was all that mattered, at the end of it – making Kouyou happy, when that was what Kouyou had been doing for Yuu all these while.

Kouyou chuckled to his raven lover and pecked him cutely on the cheek.

“Let’s go home,” Kouyou said, deciding they’d had enough drama for the day.

~

Kouyou couldn’t pry his hands off Yuu, though. Not when they were taking the lift down, not when they were waiting for their limousine to pick them up downstairs, and not even when they were on the road home. And when Kouyou finally got the chance to get Yuu alone in his penthouse, and had no reason to hold himself back any longer – the poor raven-haired was thrown down onto the large king-sized bed he owned, with the blond CEO crawling excitedly atop him after.

“So impatient,” Yuu let slip a giggle, only moaning softly afterwards as Kouyou lowered his lips to Yuu’s neck and slobbered kisses all over. “Mmm, you’re so worked up tonight.”

“How can’t I be when the love of my life just told me he loved me?” Kouyou murmured against Yuu’s skin, ravaging him with lovebites all over. “I’m going to make love to you tonight over and over again, Yuu. And you’re not going to stop me.”

Yuu gave a drunken laugh, and obliged Kouyou as the blond began to tug at the hemline of his pants to strip him down. As Yuu’s pants were tossed by Kouyou down onto the floor next to them, Yuu kicked his legs into the air and hiked them around Kouyou’s waist, waiting for the blond to strip his ownself.

“I just want your cock inside me right now,” Yuu pleaded needily through half-lidded eyes, his dark hair fanned out beautifully underneath him. “I want you to make love to me until I can’t remember who I am. I want you so much, Kouyou. Please give it to me.”

Kouyou had to resist taking him then and there, his cock twitching endlessly at the desperate sound of Yuu’s voice.

“Oh, babydoll… You’re going to regret saying this,” he purred, his hands moving down in godspeed to unzip the front of his pants. Moving around the room hastily to grab for the necessary condoms and lube, it only took him a matter of minutes to be fully prepared and back on the bed with Yuu, leaning over the raven and pinning him down by sheer weight.

“Stop being a tease,” Yuu pouted, pulling Kouyou closer to him, his hands reaching up to grasp harshly at Kouyou’s hair. The raven shivered as he felt the naked brush of Kouyou’s cock against his thigh, and spread his legs automatically wider for the blond, wrapping them around Kouyou’s waist once more.

“ _Please_ ,” Yuu choked out, inching himself closer to his older lover helplessly.

Kouyou chuckled, liking how needful Yuu was acting. Grabbing hold of the sides of Yuu’s hips roughly, he angled his cock right up against Yuu’s entrance and pushed in slowly. The loud moan that left Yuu’s mouth as Kouyou finally entered him was satisfying to hear for the blond, and Kouyou couldn’t help the groan that left his lips as well, when he felt Yuu’s familiar tightness squeezing warmly around his cock.

“Oh… _Oh_ … Oh god…” Yuu could barely open his eyes as Kouyou slid all the way inside of him, and he gave a surprised yelp when Kouyou reached a strong arm over to clasp Yuu’s wrists together, raising them above Yuu’s head, locking them in a vice grip over him. “Oh, you’re restraining me again…”

“I can’t help it, when you look so cute like that,” Kouyou replied smugly, and then he was moving out from inside of Yuu, dragging out another long moan from the raven. “Fuck, Yuu…”

“S-So _thick_ ,” Yuu whined, hips impatiently lifting to take more of Kouyou’s cock. “Nnn… Come back.”

Kouyou grinned at the adorable sight, then swiftly pushed back in, faster this time, picking up an elevated pace to fuck the raven in. Yuu’s mouth drawled open and his body thrashed around as Kouyou held him down tightly by the wrists, whilst beginning to fuck Yuu faster _and_ faster _and_ harder, sliding his cock in and out of Yuu at a frenzied pace, fucking Yuu _so_ good the raven was seeing only white.

“Fuck! Fuck, Daddy! _Daddy_! Daddddyyy…” Yuu mewled, enjoying the thickness of Kouyou’s cock slipping in and out of him, his thighs occasionally squeezing playfully around Kouyou’s girth, liking the way Kouyou huffed and panted with every slide into Yuu.

 _God_ , Kouyou looked so incredibly hot like this, hovering above the raven, his face and neck dripping with nothing but sweat – still clothed in his white dress shirt – and looking perfectly the part of a handsome CEO, too eager to fuck his babydoll into oblivion. Kouyou’s low groans were absolutely _lethal_ in the way those sounds made Yuu tremble, liking just how assertive Kouyou sounded; liking how those strong, built arms of Kouyou’s did nothing but hold Yuu down into submission with just his pure strength.

“So tight…” Kouyou groaned, bucking harder and harder into Yuu, watching as Yuu’s erection lay stiff and hard against the raven’s stomach, already spilling with pre-cum at the tip. “Mmm… Want to see you cum by just being fucked…”

Yuu bit his lip as he nodded to Kouyou’s words, knowing it wouldn’t take long for him to get there soon. As Yuu’s hips gyrated to Kouyou’s every movement, and his slim legs tightened around Kouyou’s waist, the both of them drowned the room in a constant stream of loud, pleasured moans and groans, with the continuous sound of the rattling of their bed, jerking along to every of their hard thrusts.

“I’ll never let you fuck anyone like how you fuck me,” Yuu whispered furiously, through dazed eyes. “I won’t allow it. Your cock belongs to me.”

Kouyou’s face widened into a pleasantly surprised smirk.

“I’ll never allow anyone else to fuck you like how I fuck you, either, sweetheart,” Kouyou breathed, eyes sweeping over the beautiful blush on Yuu’s cheeks. “Your body… your soul… your heart; they all belong to me. I’m never letting you go.”

And those were the last words Yuu managed to hear – the blond’s territorial stance turning him on so much he couldn’t think – before the raven reached his release and came violently underneath of Kouyou, his body writhing and flailing in a helpless mess as he rode his orgasm out against Kouyou’s cock. Kouyou came soon after, in a series of gasps and satisfied sighs, finishing off deep inside of his raven lover.

Kouyou then released his grip against Yuu’s wrists and fell limp to the bed next to Yuu, breathing heavily as he pressed his cheek right up against Yuu’s cheek.

“My beautiful babydoll,” Kouyou smiled gently, rolling the raven over to face him.

Yuu returned a shy smile back, eyes fluttering up to gaze sweetly to him.

“I love you,” Yuu said softly, still a little hesitant, but the way Kouyou’s eyes brightened up at his words made it all worth it.

“I love you too,” Kouyou whispered, trailing his fingers up Yuu’s face to caress him gently.

And they spent the rest of the night gazing to each other like this, touching, kissing, and when they were ready – _fucking_ , until they finally wore each other out and decided to settle on cuddling, instead. 

Yuu and Kouyou slept the most soundly they ever did that night, their chests leaned up against one another, their hearts finally aligned with each other’s heartbeats.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I updated!!!!! Seeking Arrangement has officially passed 100k words. ;A; IT'S PRACTICALLY NOVEL LENGTH NOW.
> 
> I've been sooo busy working the past few weeks ever since I came back from Tokyo, so I've had sooo little time to update this story. But I'm still trying! So yay for these two updates I managed to squeeze in for you guys <33 I'm still working on blogging about my Tokyo trip, but hey, writing smutty fanfiction is always a priority, hahaha. (Do I have to fangirl about how I was on Aoi's side of the stage for Budokan & how princessy he looked throughout? No? :D ALSO ALL THE OTP MOMENTS. AAAAH.)
> 
> The gala event took longer to write than i thought - it actually spanned two chapters. :O But I thought it was pretty important, for Yuu to realize that not everything had to be about having the upperhand in this relationship - and that it was actually OK for him to admit his love for his handsome blond CEO. <3
> 
> I am sooo surprised and happy to see so many people subscribing to this story! Just incase you didn't know, you can always click on the subscribe button to get email updates for whenever I update this story! :D It's a pretty useful tool I feel!
> 
> Comments as usual are sooo appreciated! They make writing this fic so much more rewarding! <3
> 
> ps: got some idol shop photos & scanned my uruha in tuxedo ones muahaha take a look -->[1](http://41.media.tumblr.com/09175e1f9312be8b07a58feb378dd22f/tumblr_nlrxacHlVW1rtf9v6o1_1280.png) & [2](http://40.media.tumblr.com/6fa1d084a4d0ccc9e581d4775e4944da/tumblr_nlrxacHlVW1rtf9v6o4_1280.png)


	22. Chapter 22

The warm touch of Kouyou’s fingers against his cheek were what roused the raven up from sleep slowly, slipping out soft, confused moans as he did so. Yuu’s eyes flitted open sleepily to a hazy view of his older lover’s face, and it took a couple of blinks for Yuu to clear his vision and cast his gaze upon Kouyou’s smiling face once more. 

“Good morning, my pretty little flower,” Kouyou greeted, his dark, clear eyes glimmering beautifully to Yuu, reflecting off the natural sunrays coming in through the glass windows. His blond hair was in a complete mess, but Yuu had succumbed to the fact long ago that Kouyou could pull off _anything_. There was the cool, refined side to Kouyou; proper and dominating, clean-shaven and very polite – but then Yuu would catch occasional glimpses of the boyish side to Kouyou sometimes, in the way his eyes lit up whenever he was happy, or the way he was always so child-like in his affections, in the way he begged for Yuu to return him the same love he’d offered him.

And right here, right now, with Kouyou’s blond hair in a hopeless mess, with stray strands sticking out of the place and his mouth fixated in a lopsided grin, Yuu thought Kouyou looked so honest, so _real_ , so handsome in a way that Yuu knew Kouyou couldn’t be hiding anything from him – and it felt impossible not to fall in love with this man even further.

“Good morning,” Yuu greeted back, his lips spreading into a small smile for the blond. Kouyou lowered his head, pressing his forehead against Yuu’s so that their noses were briefly touching, their lips just centimetres apart from each other’s.

Yuu could barely remember the last time someone had showered him with such genuine love and attention, just like how Kouyou did, and being around the blond just made Yuu so, _so_ happy. 

“Mmm,” Yuu made a small noise of content as Kouyou kissed him shortly. “What time is it? Don’t you have work?”

Kouyou stole another kiss from the raven, silencing him quickly. “What’s work? I don’t know anything of this ‘work’ you speak of.”

Yuu giggled in response, liking how playful the blond was suddenly acting. “I’m guessing someone’s playing truant today.” 

Kouyou grinned. “Me? Truant? I’m pretty sure you have classes going on right now.” And as his words sunk down into the raven and Yuu’s eyes were widening at the realization that he’d overslept through his Monday classes, Kouyou laughed and circled his arms around Yuu’s waist, tightening his grip around him.

“Not allowing you to go, though,” Kouyou cheekily said, laughing whole-heartedly at Yuu’s shell-shocked reaction. “You’re staying in with me for today. Or at least until lunch.”

Yuu narrowed his eyes to him, his lips curling up into a haughty smile. Oh? So Kouyou felt he was entitled enough now as Yuu’s boyfriend to tell Yuu what to do. “I see. _Someone_ has started taking it upon himself to make decisions on behalf of me.”

Kouyou feigned ignorance, looking to Yuu innocently. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“And you’re totally unashamed about it, too,” Yuu stuck a tongue out, taunting.

“I just wanted to spend more time with you,” Kouyou sulked, eyes apologetically staring back into Yuu’s ones. “Is that so bad?”

Yuu couldn’t stop himself from melting underneath Kouyou’s gaze even if he tried. 

“It’s… not so bad,” Yuu reluctantly admitted, trying his hardest to hide the effects Kouyou _always_ had on him. “I guess.”

“Mmm,” Kouyou’s eyes were back to their loving look, his lips leaning forward to tenderly brush against the side of Yuu’s mouth. “I was doing some thinking this morning – and I realized we left the gala event yesterday without doing something _really_ important. So I decided I’d at least take some time off today to accomplish that with you.” 

Yuu’s eyes darted up to him rather warily. “Do what?” God only knew the crazy ideas Kouyou could come up with sometimes.

Kouyou laughed at the sight of Yuu’s reservation. “Why do you look so suspicious of me? Like you’re afraid I’ll do something bad.”

Yuu made a slight huff. “I believe I have every reason to be suspicious. 

Kouyou raised up a finger to poke at the raven’s nose, chuckling. “Well, you’ll just have to find out after you wash up and get some breakfast. I’ll be in the kitchen waiting.”

Yuu wanted to say something more to annoy the blond, but Kouyou was adamant on ushering him to the bathroom, already holding him up lightly by the arm.

“Go go go!” Kouyou hurried, pointing his lover to the direction of the bathroom. Yuu sulked to his lover and forcefully dragged himself out of bed, shuffling forth to the bathroom to wash himself up.

~ 

Yuu was treated to a plate of steaming hot pancakes for breakfast, with accompanying butter and maple syrup to go along with it. Trust Kouyou to be so meticulous in his cooking as usual – and when the raven was being served breakfast by a rather handsome-looking blond CEO, with rolled up sleeves showing off the defined veins on his strong, muscled arms, Yuu found it hard to complain at the delicious sight of both his food _and_ his lover. 

The couple spent their morning mindlessly chattering about yesterday’s events, as well as possibly seeing each other again later in the week, until Yuu took his last bite of his food and Kouyou was quickly swooping in to remove his plate off the kitchen table.

“Someone’s impatient,” Yuu remarked, looking on to Kouyou curiously. Kouyou just chuckled and moved to dump the dirty dishes into the sink, before making his way back to Yuu’s side and tugging the raven up from his seat gently by the wrist.

“What’s going on?” Yuu asked, bewildered, allowing the blond to easily manhandle him in his grasp. Kouyou spun Yuu around gracefully and pulled him to the living room, face looking eager and excited as he did so.

Then he was leaving Yuu stranded in the middle of the room as the older man rushed to a corner and busied himself with what appeared to be a record player, hastily putting a vinyl record on.

Yuu gaped at the sight. “Is that a gramophone?” Of _course_ Kouyou would have one of these things. And it looked real expensive, too. 

“It is,” Kouyou proudly declared.

As the record started spinning under his fingertips, the blond pulled back and returned to Yuu’s side, his face fixated in a permanent smile as he analyzed Yuu’s reaction. The university student was still puzzled at first, wondering what on earth his lover was doing putting a random record on; but then the beautiful melody of strings slowly glided in and filled the room, resonating an air of familiarity around the raven.

It was the same exact song they had put on for the dance at the gala event yesterday, though Yuu couldn’t place a name to it anymore, since knowing the title of the song had been the least of his concerns when Akira was educating him so.

Hearing the familiar ethereal sound of strings playing immediately overwhelmed Yuu with feelings of lingering heartache, reminding him how painful it had been to watch Kouyou extend an invitation to Christine to dance last evening whilst he watched lonesomely in the background.

Yuu didn’t know what Kouyou was _doing_. And Yuu still couldn’t rid himself of the bitterness seeping into his heart.

“[Air, by Johann Sebastian Bach](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xE5FYzlwiZI),” Kouyou introduced professionally, tearing Yuu away from his heartbreaking thoughts. “From the suite no. 3 in D major.”

Yuu swallowed hard down his throat and tried to ease his disdain off his face. Kouyou meant well, he was sure. Yuu just didn’t understand the blond’s motives yet. “You know your classical music well. Akira knew it, too, yesterday.”

Kouyou quirked an eyebrow up. “Oh? I bet he did. He has some history with classical, after all. His father is – _was_ – an internationally acclaimed violinist..”

Now _that_ was something Yuu didn’t know. “That’s amazing.” Akira didn’t look like the type to have a musical background, but now Yuu was wondering if the man himself played any instruments. He would have to find out later. 

“It is,” Kouyou agreed, but he seemed adamant on shifting the subject away from Akira. “I didn’t get to have a dance with you yesterday, Yuu. But thankfully for me, I’m always prepared with these things.” 

Yuu laughed wryly to himself. “With a vintage record player? I didn’t know you to be so old-fashioned.” 

Kouyou simply smiled to him. “It was an expensive gift from a client. And I’m not one to listen to music that often, but when I do get a chance to, classical is always nice. Besides, it’s rather befitting of my image, don’t you think?”

Yuu gave him a surprised look. “I didn't know you cared about such things, Takashima Kouyou.” It always appeared as if things like image and manners came naturally to him – Kouyou never had to try hard to get people to like him, due to his charismatic nature, and it never felt like Kouyou was too overly concerned about the way he looked or dressed either. Kouyou just was.

Kouyou was perfect.

“Oh, I care about a _lot_ of things, Yuu,” Kouyou answered, winking brazenly to his lover. “And I would love to give you a whole list of things I care about, but I hope you know at the top of my list is you.” 

Of _course_ Kouyou would remember to slip in a flirty remark or two.

And then he was bowing his head slightly, extending a hand out to the raven-haired as gentlemanly as possible. Yuu was briefly startled.

“And while we’re on the subject of caring about things – I wish to know if you would care for a dance with me…?”

Yuu’s lips parted into a smile at the unexpected, romantic gesture. Smiling so widely he was sure his mouth was bound to slide off his face, Yuu felt any remaining doubts in his heart go away in that very instant, and all thoughts of Christine vanishing immediately. Why did Yuu ever get jealous about Christine in the first place? Kouyou had proven time and time again to him that Christine was something of the past; and Yuu was his one and only now. Yuu was _his._ And Kouyou was _Yuu’s_.

With a wildly beating heart, Yuu found himself replying Kouyou demurely in return.

“I accept,” the raven answered shyly, placing his hand gently down against Kouyou’s palm.

Kouyou appeared delighted at his response, and was lifting his head back up in a second, his face beaming in satisfaction. And Kouyou had never looked more like a prince than right then and there, Yuu thought to himself, his cheeks blushing just as Kouyou’s eyes swept down right across Yuu’s face. 

“You’re always so shy with me when it comes to these things,” Kouyou teased, stepping forward to the raven, his arms falling down to Yuu’s waist. He placed his hands firmly around the raven’s hips, wrapping them securely around Yuu, then encouraged Yuu to close the gap between them by enclosing his arms up around Kouyou’s neck as well. 

Yuu complied dutifully, then lay his head down gently against Kouyou’s chest, smiling softly as he felt so close to the blond he could practically hear his heartbeat. They remained locked closely in an embrace, swaying their bodies lightly to the melodic backdrop, rocking to a silent rhythm only the both of them could feel.

It felt so peaceful, so muted; it felt like Yuu could simply float away, holding Kouyou like this; it felt like Yuu was in an ethereal wonderland. Yuu could hear Kouyou’s quiet breathing, and the way his breaths staggered in the silence, and the sounds of Kouyou’s fingers fastening together behind his back as he held Yuu in his grasp.

Every note, and every waver of the violin strings emited from the record, felt as if the song was being played only for _them_ , only for their hearts to feel the love they felt. As the music graced their ears, Yuu’s eyes closed peacefully against Kouyou’s chest, drowning in the feel of Kouyou’s arms, and the passionate ballad playing in the background. 

Everything felt as if they had finally fallen into place. And Yuu’s heart was the most calm it had ever been. Yuu only wished they could have had this sooner; and maybe they would have, if Yuu hadn’t been so reluctant in allowing Kouyou into his life.

“I’m sorry,” Yuu murmured suddenly in a whisper, baffling his lover.

“What for?” Kouyou asked, in an equally soft voice.

 _For everything._ “For going round in circles and refusing to admit my love for you. For hurting you everytime I kept silent and wanted to keep my feelings all to myself for my own selfish reasons,” Yuu bit his lip, eyes looking to the floor. “If I were you, I would have moved on long ago.”

Kouyou released a sigh, realizing where Yuu was heading with this. “Yuu, you know this was never a matter of concern for me. I told you I would wait for you, and you could take all the time in the world you needed to decide. I know we both met under the impression of only getting into a relationship… with benefits, and I hadn’t expected my feelings for you would run deeper than expected. Plus, I know it’s hard to trust men of my calibre. Even _I_ find it hard to trust the people I meet on a daily basis.” 

Yuu raised his head to look up doubtfully to the blond. “It’s just… You’re just… _so_ different. You’re… so patient. And you always wait for me. I couldn’t do that. I’m selfish. Too selfish. I’m always afraid of losing out, afraid of people gaining the upperhand. And you’re in a perfect position to do that, too. You’re so handsome, and so rich, and you’re older, and you could leave me anytime. I just… I was just scared.”

Kouyou frowned, clearly in disagreement of what Yuu was saying. “You’re not selfish, sweetheart. You’re only looking out for yourself. And I get that, I really do. And you don’t have to worry about me using anything against you – I would never. Of course, I can’t help the way I look, nor the job I’m in, nor the years I’m older than you… But if being with me makes you feel uncomfortable, and this imbalance of power ever upsets you… You have to let me know. Alright? Because I don’t want to make this relationship into something that makes you feel like you’re any less of a person, Yuu. I’m only thinking of you.”

Yuu’s heart leaped of its own accord, and his lips fell back into a comforted smile.

“Well… I’m not going to lie and say that you being a hot-as-hell CEO with a lot of money to flaunt doesn’t turn me on,” Yuu confessed slyly. “Because it _does._ And you’re so gentle as a person; but at the same time you’re so… you’re so rough in bed. And it makes me feel so… ” Yuu felt his stomach clench at memories of last night streaming into his head. “So alive.” Images of Kouyou’s fit body lined up against his, thrusting urgently into him… _God_ , Yuu had never been fucked by anyone else the same way Kouyou did for him.

Yuu wasn’t going to hide the truth and lie about being a complete saint – because he _did_ like how dominant Kouyou was in bed. He liked how mature the older man was, and he liked how he never had to worry about bringing a wallet out to dinner dates with Kouyou. Being with Kouyou meant that Yuu didn’t ever have to worry about being a broke university student. All Yuu had to worry about was giving his heart to him.

And Yuu had already given his heart to him a long, long time ago. 

Kouyou chuckled at the raven’s honesty. “ _Oh_ , Yuu. I’m glad you like me the way I am.” 

Yuu grinned, gradually relaxing at his words. “Besides, you’re not like men of your calibre, too. Men like you wouldn’t care about the person I am, at all, because at the end of the day all they want is sex and company. And I’m just there to hear them rant about their day at work and look happy, _always,_ and be the Aoi they want. But I’ve grown so used to being something that people want that I forget–”

“Yuu.” Kouyou cut him short, his face deadpan. Yuu was momentarily confused, wondering why Kouyou’s smile had fallen from his face. 

But then – 

“How many men have you exactly dated?” 

~ 

Yuu hadn’t noticed he had divulged more than he had planned, and that he had been referencing his past relationships with other sugar daddies to the blond.

 _Kouyou didn’t know anything about them._ Granted, Kouyou had never asked about them, and Yuu had never thought it to be appropriate information to share with him. The raven had wondered for the longest time if Kouyou was not all that interested in Yuu’s life as a sugar baby, or if Kouyou just didn’t want to touch on those specific areas, knowing he wouldn’t like what he heard anyway. Or did Kouyou think he was the only sugar daddy Yuu had ever gotten involved with? Was Kouyou really that naïve? 

Either way, Kouyou was visibly stiffening at his words now, and Yuu felt his heart drop at his reaction. Kouyou clearly didn’t take too well to hearing about Yuu’s past endeavours, and Yuu didn’t know Kouyou would react if Yuu told him all about them. 

“I’m not the first, aren’t I?” Kouyou asked, his tone crisp and sharp. His feet came to an abrupt stop, and he was pausing in his dance with the raven.

Yuu wasn’t sure he wanted to let Kouyou know. 

“Do you really want to know?” Yuu replied meekly. 

Kouyou turned his eyes away. “I take that as a yes, then.”

Yuu felt fear grip him harder. “Are you mad?” Oh god, _no_ , please don’t be mad at Yuu. Yuu couldn’t lose Kouyou over this.

Kouyou’s face looked conflicted, but he let out a helpless sigh anyway. “No, sweetheart. I could never be mad at you. It’s not as if I haven’t thought about it – it just never really mattered to me since you had become mine. And I know I’m not the first man you dated romantically, but I’m guessing I’m also not the first wealthy man you got involved with just for the money, either. But I–” the blond hesitated to continue. Yuu’s heart wouldn’t stop dashing against his chest, threatening to almost fall out with every word Kouyou said.

“Thinking about you in bed with another man just kills me, Yuu. I don’t want to think about it. I don’t want to imagine you being pampered with by someone else. Even talking about it right now physically hurts.” And the way Kouyou looked as he said this – his eyebrows furrowed, his forehead clenched into creases, his eyes burning with utmost sadness and anger – Yuu’s heart broke at the sight. He didn’t want Kouyou feeling this way. Kouyou had a right to get irked by the thought of Yuu and his past sugar daddy relationships, and Yuu knew he could never fault him for it.

He just needed to let Kouyou know he wasn’t going to go back to any of them anymore.

Yuu buried his head deep into Kouyou’s chest, clenching his eyes shut. “I’m not leaving you! I would never. I love you. You don’t have to worry about all the other men. They were all old and disgusting anyway.” 

Kouyou broke into a laugh at Yuu’s description. It warmed Yuu’s heart. “Right. And I trust my youthfulness and charisma is much, much better than all of them?” 

“Yes!” Yuu hummed excitedly, snuggling up to his lover. “I heart you a million times more than any of them.”

Kouyou raised his fingers to Yuu’s hair, clutching at the raven as he bent down to kiss Yuu against the head. 

“I heart you too,” Kouyou said, and the love and affection in his eyes was unmistakable as he gazed down to Yuu. 

~

They forgot about the matter of Yuu’s past relationships quickly, and Yuu never had to reveal much about it to Kouyou. It was obvious that Kouyou wasn’t all too interested either, which Yuu was secretly thankful for. He didn’t want to have to tell Kouyou about the million dates Yuu had gone on, and he didn’t want to have to subject Kouyou to the torture of hearing about the amount of men Yuu had kissed, or all the nights Yuu had spent at his sugar daddies’ houses for money alone. Kouyou already knew what Yuu did as his profession, but that didn’t mean that the CEO cum lover was happy to think about it. And Yuu totally understood. Yuu didn’t want to make Kouyou unhappy in any way, either.

After dressing himself up all prim and proper in his suit to return to the office for work later, Kouyou took Yuu out for some quick lunch at a restaurant nearby before sending the raven home in his car. And when it was time for Yuu to leave, Kouyou watched the raven longingly from his seat as Yuu unbuckled his seat belt and gathered his bags to himself.

Yuu had to laugh at how sore Kouyou was acting. 

“I’ll see you again, puppy,” Yuu teased, though he liked how Kouyou was as reluctant to leave him as he was to the blond. “Just text me when you want to see me again.”

Kouyou was full-on pouting by then. “Kiss me before you go?”

Yuu stifled a giggle at how immature Kouyou was being. “Okay,” he said, and Kouyou’s fingers were reaching to grab hold of Yuu’s chin at that very instant, pulling him in for a soft kiss against the lips. Kouyou kissed him tenderly, capturing Yuu’s soft lips and biting against them needily, over and over again, leaving much to be desired. This, combined with the overwhelming scent of Kouyou’s cologne in the car, intoxicated the raven and made it twice as hard for him to leave Kouyou’s side.

“I don’t think you’re supposed to take so much time off as a CEO,” was all Yuu managed to say as he dazedly drew his lips away. 

“I don’t think _you_ can tell me what to do,” Kouyou teased playfully.

“Maybe I’ll let Akira know,” Yuu challenged, folding his arms. 

Kouyou frowned. “Since when were you on such good terms with Akira?”

Yuu just flashed him a smug smile. “Wouldn’t you like to know,” he said, pushing the car door open, preparing to leave.

“Wait!” Kouyou halted the raven, rushing to grip at Yuu’s arm. “I haven’t given you something.” The CEO quickly slipped his hand into his pocket and pulled his thick wallet out, opening it and offering Yuu an extravagant display of _all_ the credit cards he had slotted in (Yuu would neverget over how many credit cards people of Kouyou’s status kept – did they seriously need that many?). 

Kouyou pulled out a silver credit card and handed it over to Yuu, who promptly looked down at it in shock. Yuu had assumed that since they were lovers now, he wouldn’t be receiving payments from Kouyou anymore for his companionship. But it appeared as if Kouyou had taken things into his own hands… 

“It’s for you,” Kouyou said with a wide smile. The credit card he was holding looked new and untouched, and Yuu wondered if Kouyou had recently gotten it made just for him. Kouyou answered those questions of his with his next statement, though. 

“I know you mentioned you didn’t want payments anymore since we’re no longer in _that_ kind of relationship, but that doesn’t mean I can’t still spoil you. I got my secretary to make an extra card for me so I could give it to you.” 

Yuu didn’t know if it was right to accept it. On one hand, it wasn’t like Kouyou couldn’t afford this. On the other, it felt as if Kouyou was still under the impression that Yuu was only with him for his money. And it _really_ felt like they couldn’t move on from their previous relationship and progress into actual lovers if Yuu was still constantly living off Kouyou’s money. 

“Kou, you really don’t have to do this, you know…” Yuu said quietly, uncertainly.

“I know,” Kouyou insisted, face looking hopefully to the raven. “But Yuu, you always forget who I am, don’t you? Takashima Kouyou can’t leave his lover fending for himself when his lover deserves everything in the world.” 

Yuu sighed softly, unable to resist the older man’s sentimental words. How could _anyone_ resist them? If taking the card would make Kouyou happy, who was Yuu to deny that? 

“Thank you for thinking of me,” Yuu said, smiling gratefully as he accepted the card in Kouyou’s hands. “I’ll try not to use it too often.” 

“Oh, _no_ , please use it,” Kouyou hastily encouraged. “Use it as often as you want. Go wild. Well, there’s a $5,000 credit limit on it per month, so perhaps not as wild. But let me know if that’s too little for you.”

Yuu shook his head. “It’s enough! I probably won’t even need to use it as often, anyway, because you take me out all the time. And I do have my own savings to fall back on too.” 

“I don’t want you dipping into your savings,” Kouyou chided, displeased at the idea. “Use the card, alright? I’m going to get my secretary to check on it every other week and if I see it being left untouched, I’m going to have a word with you.” 

Yuu wasn’t sure as to whether he should feel crossed or delighted by how concerned Kouyou was over his financial spendings. This was a whole new level of controlling altogether – albeit a _good_ one. What kind of lover freely gave their credit card out and demanded for it to be used?

(…Kouyou, apparently.) 

“Well… Will you punish me if I don’t use it?” Yuu shamelessly asked, slyly turning to the CEO. 

Kouyou raised an eyebrow at his question, surprised by the sudden come-hither look in Yuu’s eyes.

“If that’s what you want, babydoll,” Kouyou laughed at Yuu’s attempt in talking dirty. “You know I don’t even _need_ a reason to punish you if I truly wanted to.”

Yuu scoffed at his words, annoyed the blond wasn’t playing along with him. “Okay, bye.”

Kouyou laughed harder at Yuu’s reply. “Babyydollll, you know I love you.” 

“I’m going to bankrupt you with this card and you’re going to regret giving it to me,” Yuu declared, shaking his fist. 

It took forever for the couple to finally stop their bickering and part ways, but even then, Yuu never wanted to leave Kouyou’s side.

~

“Welcome home,” came Yutaka’s voice, his body lying spread across the sofa as he held a book up high atop him to read. “I thought you’d return early this morning.”

“You’ll ruin your eyesight that way,” Yuu nagged as he passed through the apartment door, clucking his tongue at the sight of Yutaka reading whilst lying down. “Kouyou took me out for lunch before he drove me home.” 

“I see.” Yutaka flipped a page of his book. Yuu had the slightest suspicion that Yutaka wasn’t really reading anymore. “So, did you have fun? The gala event, I mean. I didn’t realize it was such a big thing, but I was flipping past the channels last night and saw media coverage on it. It’s some annual gala event thrown by this billionaire businessmen and many important people and celebrities attend it.”

“Wow, I saw a ton of cameras but I didn't know it was being aired live,” Yuu strutted through the living room with his heavy bags, heading for his bedroom. “The gala was pretty scary. It was crowded and grand and we met a ton of Kouyou’s business associates.” 

“You didn’t look very scared, though,” Yutaka casually commented. “You looked good. Nice suit, by the way.”

…Hold the fuck up. Yuu had _never_ shown Yutaka what he was wearing. How did Yutaka know? Unless… 

“I was on television?” Yuu rushed to ask, whipping his head back to Yutaka, heart racing furiously in his chest. Holy _fuck_. 

“Briefly,” Yutaka answered. “The media goes crazy over who arrives on the red carpet and who doesn’t. I think they had some fashion police segment going on, too.”

Oh, Yuu was _so_ screwed. 

How many people had watched that telecast? How many people did Yuu _not_ want to see that telecast? How many men – that Yuu had gone out with before – now knew he was dating _Takashima Kouyou_? It wouldn’t be as bad if those men were a bunch of nobodies, but – but these were men that all held important statuses in this society. And Kouyou might be the most important of them all so far, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t know each other. These circles were small and they were bound to have heard of, or talked to, each other at least once.

“I can’t have people knowing I’m dating Kouyou,” Yuu shrieked, dropping his bags onto the floor. “I mean, I haven’t – I – oh my _god_. Yutaka, what if they don’t even know I’m _dating_ him? What if they think I’m just sugaring him?”

Yutaka sat up against the sofa, puzzled by Yuu’s sudden outburst. “What’s going on? Why are you freaking out?” 

“I work as a sugar baby!” Yuu’s face drained, placing his hands against his face. “I’m dead. I’m dead. I’m _dead_. No one knows how Kouyou and I met. And my relationships with all these other men are always low-key and discreet – we never publicize it. But right now I’m publicizing mine with Kouyou. And Kouyou’s so important! What if he’s receiving calls right now from trusted associates asking if his lover is just someone he’s paying money to for sex. Can you imagine his humiliation?” 

Yutaka folded his arms, shaking his head at Yuu’s revelation, seeing no point in the raven getting worried. “To be perfectly honest, Kouyou should have thought of that before he brought you to that event. He knows all about what that event would entail, after all. So even if he receives a call right now from clients asking him about you, it’s Kouyou’s fault. Not yours.” 

Yuu frowned, not liking how Yutaka seemed to pin the blame on Kouyou for everything. “It’s not! It’s mine!”

“OK, let’s say it’s yours. So what? It’s not as if Kouyou doesn’t know what you work as. It’d be a different story altogether if he _didn’t_ know.” Yutaka pointed out.

Yuu simply sulked in response. “It doesn’t even feel like Kouyou wants to acknowledge my history, actually. I mean – he did ask about it, but he doesn’t have interest in it. I don’t blame him, because he has said he doesn’t like thinking about me dating other men. But…” 

Yutaka had a look of concern on his face. “You think it’s important that Kouyou knows about your past relationships.”

Yuu nodded, turning his eyes away. “But at the same time, I don’t want to tell him anything. I just – I never expected him and I to get this far. And now that we have… I’m not actually sure how to let him know about all these things. I haven’t even… Oh, _god_. I haven’t even…” Yuu buried his face into his hands. 

Yutaka, sensing the raven was about to head for a nervous breakdown, jumped over the sofa and hastened to Yuu’s side, arms warmly bringing Yuu into a comforting embrace. 

“It’s going to be okay, Yuu,” Yutaka assured, strong arms hugging the raven close to him. “If Kouyou loves you, all these things shouldn’t matter to him at all.”

 _Oh_ , but Yutaka didn’t know the real reasons why at all. Yuu was so fucked, and in more ways than one. 

“Not when he knows I haven’t broken it off with all the other men,” Yuu choked out, finally admitting it all at a go. 

Yutaka was stunned to silence, his jaw falling open at Yutaka’s confession.

“What?” 

And that when Yuu knew he truly fucked up. 

~

“ _What_?”

“I haven’t even...” Yuu shielded his eyes away from Yutaka, too embarrassed to maintain a gaze with him. “I haven’t told them I was done with them.” 

“Are you still seeing them?” Yutaka snapped. Yuu flinched at the tone of his voice. When _even_ Yutaka was getting mad at him, Yuu knew he was done for.

“I haven’t seen them in awhile,” Yuu said quietly. “But that’s only because I stopped responding to their messages.”

Yutaka then withdrew from the embrace and grabbed hold of Yuu’s shoulders, forcing the raven to look back up to him. The brunet did _not_ look happy. 

“Yuu, you have to break it off with them. If I was Kouyou and I heard this from you… I would be really, really hurt, Yuu.”

Yuu fluttered his eyes shut, uttering out a low sigh. “I know. I’m a huge loser. I just cultivated this habit of scrolling past their messages whenever they come in, and only looking for Kouyou’s messages instead. It’s almost like they don’t exist. Maybe if I ignore them long enough, they’ll get a hint.” 

“Trust me, they’re still out there waiting for your reply so they can hit you up again.” Yutaka lectured, his lips scrunched up in an exasperated frown. “Yuu… You really underestimate how mesmerizing you are, don’t you? You don’t know how long these men who like you are willing to wait for you. You think their feelings are just going to go away, but it won’t. You’re just too…” Yutaka’s fingers trailed up the side of Yuu’s right cheek gently. “Perfect.”

Yuu opened his eyes to meet Yutaka’s yearning ones, and for a moment the sight of Yutaka’s eyes boring back intensely into Yuu’s ones confused Yuu. 

 _He can’t still be in love with me._  

“You should tell them,” Yutaka cleared his throat, saying, breaking the tension between them. “You should cut it off with them. You don’t have to tell Kouyou if neither of you want to talk about it – but you need to settle it on your end. Don’t leave those men hanging, okay?” 

Yuu nodded reluctantly, knowing what Yutaka was saying was right. “I guess I’ll have to. I’m just scared they might retaliate and hurt me in some way, but… It’s better to let them know that I’m no longer available for them.” 

“They won’t hurt you,” Yutaka rushed to promise in a low whisper, his gaze firm and resolute. “Not on my watch. Don’t worry, Yuu. I’ll protect you.”

Yuu gave a small smile in return. It was reassuring knowing that Yutaka would always have his back no matter what – even though it was Yuu doing the fucking up most of the time. “Thank you,” he said, pulling his brunet roommate into a grateful embrace. 

“I’ll protect you,” Yutaka repeated softly, eyes closing as he rested his chin against Yuu’s head, his arms tightening around Yuu’s back. Yuu knew at that very moment that the heart beating up against his chest wasn’t beating solely out of concern. 

_Yutaka’s still in love with me._

And Yuu’s heart had never weighed heavier at the knowledge that out of so many men’s hearts to break, the one heart he never wanted to hurt _just_ had to be the hardest one to break.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long T__T I am soo busy.
> 
> I've updated new songs into my [Spotify playlist](http://open.spotify.com/user/11177336146/playlist/5TTTl4RlQG82pkD7sahP2j) for this fic!
> 
> BTW, as always if you guys want to share with me any song recommendations / graphics anytime pertaining to SA, you should totally share it with me! :D I welcome any source of inspiration, hahaha.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Always looove to read your thoughts on it as usual. :) See you soon!


	23. Chapter 23

It took awhile before Yuu mustered the courage to actually draft messages and send them out to his sugar daddies, informing them he was no longer available for any future arrangements, but he finally did it that night. Tossing his phone to a corner almost immediately after, Yuu found himself diving into bed and blocking out everything else – with the exception of thoughts of Kouyou.

Yuu woke up the next morning with a nervously beating heart, only daring to glance to his phone after washing up and settling down at the kitchen to have his breakfast. Yutaka had already left the apartment earlier for his own classes, but very considerately remembered to leave behind some toasted bread and eggs for Yuu to eat. Yuu checked his messages with his breath held at the dining table, hoping none of his sugar daddies had reacted too strongly to his message.

To his relief, none of them so far seemed to prove too much of a threat. There were some that were kind and understanding, and then there were others that outrightly insulted Yuu’s being for giving up such an opportunity to be their sugar baby. They couldn’t do much damage, though – Yuu knew these types of men too well. They were all talk but no show, and Yuu knew they would move on to another sugar baby soon enough.

Interestingly, there wasn’t the anticipated text from the attorney that had been frantically messaging him for a reply all these while. Yuu didn’t know whether to be comforted by that fact or not. Did the attorney get too upset to continue chasing after Yuu? Was he finally backing off? Or would he come back later with a threat?

Yuu didn’t know what to think.

He didn’t have to, though, for now. Grabbing his jacket off the counter and tossing his dishes hastily into the sink, Yuu decided to head to his classes for the day first and get them done and over with before occupying his mind with other thoughts.

Well, not without replying to Kouyou’s text, first... Yuu smiled to himself as his fingers maneuvered against his phone’s screen, scrolling back up to Kouyou’s text. The blond always sent a daily morning message to Yuu without fail.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Good morning babydoll! :) How is my little flower feeling today? I trust the past weekend had been an extremely good rest for you._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _You flatter yourself, mister._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _…But it was. <3_

_~_

Yuu knew he couldn’t hide anything from Takanori – especially not a bigass gala event. Takanori would know. And Takanori already _knew_. As Yuu moved to settle down into his usual seat in class next to Takanori, he could see his smaller classmate’s eyes light up in bubbling excitement, his lips quirking up into a grin.  

Yuu sighed, and with the shake of his head, readied himself for the interrogation he knew was coming. In three… two… on–

“Yoshizawa’s gala! It’s easily the biggest gala event of the year. I can’t believe you didn’t tell me you were going with your billionaire boyfriend!”

Yuu shushed him almost immediately; his friend’s excitement was translating into high-pitched shouts that were spilling out things Yuu didn’t want everyone to know. Students were still slowly streaming into class, and Yuu didn’t want to make the issue about whom he was dating outside of school too big of a big deal around here.

Being with Takashima Kouyou had already long proven to Yuu that he was more than just another fancy name – Kouyou _actually_ had credibility and influence in this industry he worked in. Yuu didn’t know how many more people knew who the blond was, but given that the CEO was important enough to be reported about in the news’ headlines, Yuu knew Kouyou had to be a powerful enough figure. Speaking of, Yuu had to find out if Takanori found out about the gala through the TV, too.

“Did you watch the broadcast on television, too?” Yuu asked inquisitively. “You don’t look like the type to keep up with the news.” Not the regular news, anyway. Yuu was certain Takanori knew the latest fashion news like the back of his hand – the man was a hardcore fashion trend follower.

Takanori snorted in response. “I won’t say that you’re wrong, but this _is_ the gala event of the year we’re talking about. And I keep up with celebrity gossip! They had such good looks on the red carpet this time. You looked smashing, by the way. I’m _also_ guessing you smashed pretty hard Sunday night, which explains your absence yesterday.” Yuu felt his face turn positively pink at his words. Damn, Taka always got him. And the little wink Takanori was giving him wasn’t helping much, either.

“Um… That’s totally not true,” Yuu dismissed, embarrassed, but the way his lips were slowly curving up into a small smile gave it all away. “Okay, fine. But that’s only because Kouyou forced me to. Not go for classes, I mean. He’s very crafty!”

And uh, _very_ convincing in bed. 

Takanori looked amused. “Crafty, huh? Now you got me all curious about the kind of man he is…” The man briefly cackled at the thought. “Though, if he’s anything like Akira, I’m guessing it must be hard to deny him what he wants. Akira’s pretty charming… These men are incorrigible.”

Yuu’s interest was perked. “Oh? You’ve met him again?” Yuu had been too busy over the weekend to keep up with Takanori, but Akira had made no mention of going out on a date with Takanori yet. Or had Akira declined to mention such things?

“Just yesterday,” Takanori grinned uncontrollably to himself. “Just a casual coffee date. Though, I’m not complaining – he came to pick me up from class in a real expensive car, it was _so_ cool. It’s almost like stepping into a whole new world, the corporate kind with ties and suits and charming men who sweep you right off your feet.”

Yuu suppressed a laugh, knowing his initial reaction to Kouyou’s car and presence had been exactly the same. Now that Yuu thought about it, he was so used to Kouyou’s Lamborghini, it didn’t even occur to him much just how unusual it was to be driven around in one anymore. Was Yuu starting to take this privileges he got while being with Kouyou for granted? Yuu momentarily wondered if he could ever get used to his normal life if – god forbid – Kouyou ever decided to break up with him.

“So, how did the coffee date go? Was Akira nice?” Yuu asked. He didn’t doubt Akira’s niceness, but it would be interesting to hear about Takanori’s thoughts on the man.

Takanori was practically _swooning_ in his reply. “He is _so_ good-looking. I can’t even put it into words. And the way he speaks, and the way he acts… It’s so refined. We’ll never get guys like that around here in our university. Akira’s so polite, and he speaks so coolly, and he makes me feel like my presence is _actually_ wanted. It’s horrible how comfortable I am with him. I’m not telling him that, though.” The man put a finger to his lips, laughing rather evilly. “I’m not showing how much I like him just yet… I’m going to play a little hard-to-get.”

Yuu broke into a delighted laugh. _Oh_. Akira was in for a total surprise with Takanori. Takanori was a little feisty one here.

“You _do_ realize he’s the vice-president of a company, right?” Yuu teased. “Aren’t you afraid mister vice-president might find someone else? Someone much easier?”

Takanori smiled rather smugly back. “Oh, _please_. He’s totally lucky to have me! I’m the one he has to worry about. We’re meeting tomorrow for another lunch date.”

Yuu burst out laughing. “Seriously? Honestly, your characters are so different from each other I’m _so_ interested in how your relationship dynamic is like. Maybe sometime in the future we could go on a double date…”

“A double date sounds sweet,” Takanori agreed, nodding his head. “Let’s set that up soon! I want to meet Mr CEO too, and see exactly how ‘crafty’ he is.”

Yuu’s face turned red at Takanori’s suggestive remark. “He’s not _that_ crafty. Well, um…” Yuu’s phone was suddenly vibrating with a new text, and the raven rushed to retrieve it from his pocket.

“Is it from the mister?” Takanori teased, eyeing Yuu’s blushing face.

“Um… probably is,” Yuu’s fingers deftly unlocked his phone’s screen to look to the message. It _should_ be Kouyou, replying to his text with a cute message whining about how much he missed the raven and how he wanted to see the raven again. Yuu readied himself to glance upon Kouyou’s text, his heart fluttering excitingly in anticipation.

…Except it wasn’t. 

 _One New Message  
_ **_It’s Takashima Kouyou, isn’t it?_ **  

Another angry text came a second later.

 _One New Message  
_ **_You dumped me for Takashima Kouyou._ **

And that was the moment Yuu felt his heart plummet so far down he could no longer breathe.

~

Yuu barely survived the entirety of class without getting into a nervous breakdown. And when it was finally time to leave, he convinced Takanori he had a date with Kouyou and had no time to stay for small talk.

And then he was off like the wind, rushing back home with a frenzied mind and a frightened heart. He was dialing Yutaka’s number hurriedly on his phone as he made his way back, wanting to hear his best friend’s voice as soon as possible. Yuu had never felt more relieved to hear his call being picked up.

“Hello?” Yutaka sounded concerned. Yuu knew he had every right to be since Yuu rarely had a habit of calling him; it was always only texts between the both of them. Yuu only ever called Yutaka if he needed to – if he was stuck in a dangerous situation, or urgently needed Yutaka’s help.

“Are you at home?” Yuu anxiously questioned, his voice coming out in tremors.

Yutaka’s voice quickly tensed up. “Yes. I am. Just got back. What’s wrong?”

“I’m so fucked,” Yuu hissed, bringing his other hand to his face devastatedly. “And god, I’m so scared. I don’t know if I’ve angered one of _them_ or not.”

“Them?” Yutaka asked hesitantly. “You mean the men who pay you for sex?”

“Pay me for companionship,” Yuu corrected with a ‘tsk’. “Not the point. Remember how I told you I would end things with them? I sent out a mass text to all of them last night informing them I couldn’t go out with them anymore. And some of them were cool with it, some of them were not. Well, it doesn’t matter – but there’s a particular one that I had been going out with for quite awhile, that had been paying me rather handsomely, too. And he’s got quite a bit of influence… and he seems to know Takashima Kouyou.”

“Wait, hold on,” Yutaka cut him short, confused. “How do you know he knows Takashima Kouyou?”

Yuu inhaled deeply, his words shaky. “H…He replied to my ‘I’m ending things’ text with a ‘It’s Takashima Kouyou, isn’t it?’ message. And… he seemed pretty mad about it, too. I’m… I’m scared. I’m not sure what I should do.”

Yutaka uttered a soft sigh after hearing about the whole situation. “Alright, Yuu. Just quickly come home and we’ll figure things out, okay? Don’t worry, you’re not alone in this. I’m sure he’s just mad, and nothing bad will come out of it.”

Yuu squeezed his eyes shut. “I hope so, too. It’s just… You know I _hate_ confrontations. And I’ve been putting this off for so long, and now it’s coming to me all at once… I’m just scared.”

Yutaka rushed to comfort him. “Yuu, we’ve been through this so many times. I’ll never let anything happen to you, alright? Now come home so we can sort this out, and then we’ll have a nice dinner later.”

“Mmm,” Yuu clenched the phone tighter to himself, hoping what Yutaka was saying was true. Maybe he was just freaking out. Maybe everything would be alright.

And as he ended the call with Yutaka, he was pleasantly surprised to see a text message waiting for him on his phone screen, this time from the man he’d been waiting for the whole day.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Sorry this reply came so late, I’ve been in and out of meetings the whole day. Miss you so terribly much. How was your day, sweetheart?_

Bad, Yuu thought, but he knew he could never reveal about what was going on to Kouyou.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _good! i miss you too <3 :)_

And that was step one – Yuu’s first fatal mistake.

~

“Just tell him the truth,” Yutaka said, leaning forward in his seat on the couch with his legs spread, his lips pursed in a deep frown. “Tell the attorney you’re going out with Kouyou in an official relationship, and not as a sugar baby. I’m sure he’ll back off once he realizes you’re taken.”

Yuu looked to his phone whilst biting his lip nervously. “I feel bad, because he’s spent so much money on me and I’m suddenly breaking it off with him. I bet he feels like his investment didn’t pay off…”

Yutaka was instantly snapping to him, in disbelief at the sound of his words. “ _Investment_? Yuu, you’re talking about yourself as if you’re an object. You’re a _fucking_ human being. If you decide you want to stop your arrangements, it’s purely up to you. It takes two for things to work – he’s not in a superior position just because he has the cash.”

Yuu winced at his asserting tone, looking away. Yuu knew Yutaka was blatantly being honest about the truth, but that didn’t mean the raven liked hearing it. “You’re right, but.”

“But?” Yutaka raised his voice slightly higher. “You know, Yuu, it’s this kind of thinking that gets me all worried about you. You feel like you’re on a lower pedestal because these men are wealthy and they’re paying you with their hard-earned money, but that’s not true. You’re free to make your own decisions. And I’m always so worried Takashima Kouyou is forcing you into things you don’t want because you’re so… you’re so naïve. You want to play with their hearts, but you treat yourself like you’re trash sometimes. You think manipulating men for cash is clever – but these men manipulate you through fear. And you grow dependent on their money, and you stop realizing you’re a person anymore.”

A look of hurt flashed across Yuu’s eyes. “That’s not true.” Or maybe it was. Yuu had just never thought about it that way; never stopped to wonder why he was so frightened about revealing his true self; so frightened about letting down all of these men. Perhaps he had grown to like the attention showered upon him when he was Aoi; perhaps the attachment to the persona he created just for these men made Yuu feel guilt for disappointing his sugar daddies after all these while.

“If it wasn’t true, Yuu, then why did it take you so long to tell every one of them you don’t want to go out with them anymore? And _why_ are you so scared of some form of retaliation? They’re all old, balding men, with too much money to spare. They can barely retaliate.”

“But they’re all in positions of power,” Yuu answered stiffly. “And you _don't_ know men in positions of power.”

Yutaka scoffed loudly, finding the very idea of that a joke. “ _Oh_ , I think I do, Yuu. I know that you’re head over heels for men like that, and I know that if I had only been ten years older, already an established doctor with an extravagant income to flaunt, you might – _maybe then_ – consider me for a date.

But I’m not. And we’re stuck here, talking about how to deal with your goddamn sugar daddy, when all you have to do is tell him you’re seeing someone else. Someone else richer than him, too.”

Yuu didn’t want to have to deal with another argument with Yutaka, but the way he was wording things was irking the raven too much. Just because the brunet still harboured feelings for him did _not_ give him a free pass in talking shit about him and his relationship with Kouyou.

Yutaka had to get over himself.

“It’s been ten years – well, feels like, anyway – and you’re still going on about how I only like older men,” Yuu angrily muttered in reply, head lifting up to meet Yutaka’s eyes. “Even if I do, is that really such a big deal? Look, if this problem is annoying you so much, you don’t have to help me out, you know. I’m tired of dealing with your mood flunctuating and you going on about how you’ll always protect me, and then in the next second you’re attacking me for _not_ being in love with you. Like it’s my goddamn fault for liking someone else. I don’t get you.”

Yutaka went silent after that. Clasping his hands together and bringing it to his forehead, the brunet kept quiet for a while, his eyebrows furrowed together in deep thought, his lips parted in a low sigh.

“It’s hard to concentrate on other things when I’m,” Yutaka paused, his voice suddenly dry. Yuu could already hear his sentiment in the silence. “When I still like you. A lot. I’m sorry if I get mad sometimes. It just feels like unnecessary drama to me when I just… if you just… we could…” Yutaka’s eyes darted to the ground. “Forget it.”

Yuu had guessed it long ago.

“It’s okay,” Yuu answered softly, his tone gentle, gradually calming down after Yutaka’s apology. Sometimes all it took to alleviate his anger was to know Yutaka didn’t mean any of it. “I don't blame you for your feelings, Yutaka. I just wish we could stop arguing like this, you know? And I really… I really don't appreciate hearing all these comments about the men I date, who I like to date, and why I can’t date you. And you know I love you as a friend, I just…”

“I know,” Yutaka swallowed thickly, uncomfortably. “I know, Yuu. It just hurts because I still can’t understand why men like that are being chosen over me, and it hurts even more knowing I can’t compare to any of them. So sometimes I lash out because of it. And I know it’s not right. It’s just – it really makes me sometimes wish I was ten years older or filthy rich already or just… enough, you get me? It really makes me question a lot of things about myself.”

Yuu’s heart ached a bit hearing him speak about himself like that. The raven didn’t think he could ever stop Yutaka from feeling in such a manner, given that Yuu would react the same way in the exact situation, but that didn’t mean the raven still didn’t feel guilt for causing Yutaka to feel that way.

“You know I never meant it like that,” Yuu whispered, his eyes in a sorry gaze.

Yutaka shook his head, waving it off. “It’s fine. Let’s just get back to the main topic. I’m sorry I got angry for a bit. Anyway, I think you should just tell the attorney the truth, like I said. It won’t hurt anyone, right? Like I said, he’ll probably back off. That’s the only advice I have for you.”

Yuu nodded his head, feeling a little more certain now. “I guess I have to. I can’t keep running from this… It’s just worsening the problem.”

“It is,” Yutaka said, then proceeded to get up from his seat, dusting off his pants. “I have to go prepare dinner now. I’ll leave you to settle things with the attorney in the meantime, alright? If there’s anything, just let me know.”

“Mmm,” Yuu nodded.

Deciding to grab for his phone once more, Yuu’s fingers hovered over his keyboard and began drafting out a reply to the lawyer he’d been neglecting for too long.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _You’re right. I’ve gotten into a relationship with Kouyou – not an arrangement, just for the record. I would appreciate if you and me ended on amicable terms and moved on from this. I really enjoyed my time with you previously, thank you._

It took him a _long_ time of deliberation, for his finger to finally press down against that ‘send’ button; but when he finally did, Yuu had never felt more relieved.

Meanwhile, Kouyou had gotten back to him with a few more texts.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Oh, seems like your friend injected some ideas into Akira’s head about a double date. This Saturday okay with you? It’d be nice to meet Akira and his new beau for dinner._

Man, Takanori was _fast._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Also, people have been eyeing me with knowing looks this whole day… I feel like everyone has read the news. They know I’m getting laid. :)_

Seriously, Kouyou? Yuu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Jokes aside – this further proved that basically everyone had read about the gala event. Yuu really had underestimated the whole thing, hadn’t he?

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Akira just looked over my text and chimed in with a ‘Pretty sure your secretary told me just this morning she was happy her boss seemed less tense of late’. Akira needs to fuck off._

Really? Less tense? I couldn’t even tell, Yuu thought to himself, barely containing his giggles.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _stop being such a mean boss! i thought i did a good job in helping you relax over the weekend… didn’t i? <3 i’m glad ur finally getting laid, winky wink ;)_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _sat is fine with me!!! as long as its fine with you. i’m always happy with anything daddy plans hehehe. i can’t believe how fast taka is, we were just literally talking about a double date earlier today -___-_

Kouyou’s replies were quick as usual.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _The weekend was heavenly with you, babe <3 I don’t think I can get used to a weekend where I’m no longer seeing you. I don’t think I can get used to not being around you at all…_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Haha, yes, very honoured to be finally getting laid and with such a beauty like you. I’ll confirm with Akira about Saturday then. We can go shopping before dinner with them or something – tell me what you want to do and I’ll arrange it. Let me know okay, princess?_

Of course, my handsome prince, Yuu grinned, anxiously typing back a response.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _stop treating me like i’m so delicate and fragile and whiny and spoilt >>_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _But I thought you liked it. Don’t you, my sweet lil princess? <3_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _you know, you keep thinking you’re my prince, but what if you’re not a prince and you’re an assassin who kidnapped me for your own pleasure >>_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Oh, roleplaying with me now, I see. Is that a new idea we can play with the next time we have sex?_

Yuu’s cheeks immediately flushed pink at his teasing. Kouyou was always _so_ forward. And Yutaka was just in the vicinity too…

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _or I could be a mad king who ravages you for my own pleasure_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _and I could tie you up and make you beg for more each time I slid my cock out of you_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _How about that?_

…Jesus _fuck_. Yuu was in no time and place to get a hard-on right now.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i’m getting dinner soon so stop sexting me !!! u criminal_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Hahahaha…_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _It’s fine, I’ll just masturbate alone to photos of you :) Innocent face._

Yuu almost choked on his own saliva. The nerve of this CEO sometimes…

 **_Yuu:_ ** _aren’t you in the office?_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _So?_

Yuu made a snort. Right. Why did he ever think that would stop him?

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Not like my office isn’t isolated. It’s pretty dead quiet here._

 **_Yuu:_ ** _u know, sometimes i like to think you’re very intelligent and serious as an important CEO but at the end of the day you’re just abnormally sex-crazed and horny all the time -_-_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Ouch._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Hehe. So, not gonna join me? Still want some sexy photos from you, you know._

Now? _Now_?! Yuu widened his eyes and raised his head up, peeking over catch a glimpse of Yutaka in the kitchen. The brunet was only ten feet away cooking. If he found Yuu out, the raven would be _humiliated._

But at the same time, he wouldn’t realize if Yuu slipped away back to his bedroom for a brief moment to ‘entertain’ Kouyou…

Fuck it. Yuu only lived once, after all.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _you’re going to be the ruin of me_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Proudly so._

_~_

God, this was so _fucking_ embarrassing.

After repeatedly making sure his door was locked, Yuu then plopped back down onto his bed and stripped himself of his jeans. He’d forgone the cute lingerie for comfortable boxer shorts today for class (Yuu couldn’t possibly stick to racy underwear everyday – it wasn’t practical) but the raven didn’t feel like taking photos of himself in such awful, boring underwear to send to the blond. No, Yuu was feeling particular _daring_ today.

Kneeling against his bed, Yuu inched himself to the drawers located right next to it and pulled one of them open, hands quickly sifting through the various risqué-looking panties he’d collected over the years. Yuu had always been fond of dressing himself in such feminine lingerie – it was just another kink of his, another hobby that Yuu _happened_ to look extremely good in. And, as his eyes lay upon a pair of minty-blue colored underwear with a hole appropriately cut-out at the back, the raven’s eyes were gleaming as he pulled it out, knowing Kouyou would _love_ it to bits.

Yuu tossed his boxer shorts aside and comfortably slid the sleek panties over both of his legs, fitting it around up his ass tightly. The raven’s hands caressed down the curve of his butt, feeling up the soft material of the underwear; and, after feeling satisfied with the way it clung against his skin, Yuu was moving to his upper drawers, pulling out a bottle of lube and a pink vibrating dildo. Yuu _could_ get off with just his fingers alone, but seeing as the raven was currently pressed for time, the dildo would finish him off rather nicely and swiftly.

Besides, Yuu thought Kouyou would like to see the raven experimenting with toys, anyway. It was something Yuu had never done before in front of him, and he thought this would get the older CEO even more excited than usual.

Just as Yuu settled back down against the bed with everything prepared, his phone was ringing with a new text message, alerting him of Kouyou’s impatience.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _What’s taking you so long? Are you still there?_

 _Oh,_ Kouyou. Always so eager. 

Yuu decided to reply with a photo instead. Getting on all fours on his bed, Yuu aimed his phone camera right above his ass, capturing his firm posterior in all its glory, clothed in obscene girly panties. He was going to tease Kouyou to _death._

**_Image attached  
_** **_Yuu:_ ** _here you go… ;)_

Kouyou was immediately seen typing right after the image was sent.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Holy shit……………_

Yuu had to slap a hand over his mouth to muffle his laughter. That was _exactly_ the reaction he wanted. Each time Yuu managed to reduce Kouyou from a charming prince-like CEO into a perverted horny maniac, the raven _always_ felt an overwhelming sense of pride and delight.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _there’s more coming ;)_

Yuu gathered his pillows and stacked them up against the bedframe, allowing him to cushion himself against them as he positioned himself rather nicely in a sitting up posture. Then he was coating his fingers with lube, and slipping it down inside his panties, wrapping them around his still cock.

“ _Oh_ ,” Yuu breathed, once his cold fingers made contact with his sensitive member. He thought of how slutty he was acting right now, pleasuring himself _for_ his boyfriend situated right across the city, when his roommate was right outside completely oblivious to the situation behind Yuu’s closed doors. Yuu thought about Kouyou sitting in his office chair, his pants tight as hell, his fingers having to urgently zip them open and free his raging erection _just_ because he couldn't stop thinking about fucking Yuu.

Then Yuu thought about Kouyou’s big cock, always veiny and leaking and ready for him, always ready to fuck right inside of Yuu’s asshole anytime Kouyou ever so wished.

If Yuu wasn’t hard enough before, Yuu was definitely hard _now_. The raven twisted his fingers against his cock, rubbing the head to spread the precum, and imagined it to be the rough pad of Kouyou’s thumb. Yuu briefly remembered in the haze of his pleasure to snap a second photo, and then he was lazily grabbing for his phone, taking several shots of his pleasured face with his lips spread open in a delicate moan, as well as photos of his cock stained with evidence of thoughts of Kouyou.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i’m thinking of your hard cock_

Yuu had never felt so naughty before. This was probably the first time he’d sent such dirty pictures of himself to anyone, considering no one had ever made such requests of him in the past, but this made this particular experience even more fun. Yuu felt a sick thrill run through him with every photo he sent to his boyfriend; and it only made him even hotter and hornier for Kouyou’s cock.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Fuck, Yuu…_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Fuck, you always look so fucking hot when you make that face. I want to see more_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I’m so fucking hard right now, I can’t stop touching myself to these photos_

Yuu went smug at his boyfriend’s replies. He could imagine Kouyou right now, a hand urgently sliding up and down his cock, jerking himself off hurriedly to these lewd photos of Yuu, being absolutely needy without Yuu by his side.

God, Kouyou must look so fucking hot.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _take a picture of how hard you are for me, Daddy_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _show me how much you want your princess xx_

Kouyou didn’t take long to send over that photo he requested. And _fuck_ , Yuu didn’t regret asking for it. Kouyou looked so thick and large _and_ covered in a mess of slick oil and precum; Yuu was feeling rather sorry himself that he wasn’t in Kouyou’s office right now.

Yuu spread his legs to begin preparing himself, though he didn’t bother getting rid of his panties seeing as it had a hole cut-out specially where his asshole was, anyway. With one hand still on his cock, the twenty-one year old brought his other hand down to his entrance and gently worked a finger in, eliciting a quick moan from the raven.

Yuu ended up rubbing his cock and writhing helplessly against the bed as he worked himself open with his finger inside of him, until he was ready for a second one, and then a third one. Moaning Kouyou’s name endlessly, Yuu repeatedly plunged his fingers in and out of him, his thrusts growing faster and faster each time he remembered the sight of Kouyou’s veiny cock.

“ _Nnn…_ Daddy… _Daddy_ ,” Yuu whispered urgently to himself, his head thrown back, pretending it was Kouyou’s throbbing member presently pushing inside of him, instead of his delicate, slim fingers that did little in comparison.

Deciding to free his hand against his cock and reach for his phone instead, Yuu recorded a mini clip of himself finger-fucking his ass, his mouth parted in weak whimpers of Kouyou’s name. Yuu wanted to act like such a fucking slut he could drive Kouyou _crazy_.

“Kouyou… _please_ …” Yuu mewled in a pleading tone, his voice caught in a gasp somewhere along his throat. He aimed the camera at his fingers thrusting in and out of his asshole hurriedly, and then up to his face; where his lips pouted and his eyelashes fluttered up in a dangerously cute, but flirtatious manner. “P…Please… _Daddy_ …”

And then the video was quickly captured and sent over to his CEO boyfriend, who – Yuu guessed – wasn’t holding up too well on his end either.

Kouyou’s response was immediate.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Fuck, this is sending me to my limit_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _You know I love the way you moan my name. Your voice was made to beg for it. Beg for me_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _If I was there right now, I’d be fucking you non-stop. I’d fuck you against the wall and the bed and the floor and I’d fuck you until you screamed and cried and begged for me to stop. And by then I would have cum inside of you so many times you wouldn’t even feel your legs_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I want to do so many things to you right now. You don’t know how bad you've got me_

Oh, Yuu knew _perfectly_ how bad he got him.

But it wasn’t even the finalé yet. Yuu pulled his wet fingers out of his ass, then seductively brought them up to his mouth for him to suck. He posed for another camera shot – full lips stained with the dirty contents of his fingers, with his dazed, heavily lidded eyes smiling sultrily to the camera – and sent it instantly over to Kouyou.

He didn’t bother waiting for Kouyou’s reaction, though. Getting off the bed to place his phone onto the desk conveniently placed right opposite his bed, Yuu left the camera on video record mode, snickering when he thought of how pleased Kouyou would be once he realized Yuu had decided to give him more than what the blond had bargained for – a video of Yuu fucking himself with a dildo just for Kouyou.

Returning back to the bed, Yuu got on all fours and grabbed for the dildo lying on the sheets. He subsequently drenched it with lube, then positioned it right against his flushed hole, pink and stretched and ready for penetration. Wriggling his ass cutely to the camera for a bit, Yuu burst into a couple of playful giggles, before taking a moment to calm himself for the dildo to go in.

He switched it on carefully, feeling the vibrations run through his skin. And the minute he pushed it inside of him, Yuu’s body was immediately shuddering along with the doldo, his breath hitching into a high-pitched whine.

“K-Kouyou D-Daddy…!” Yuu cried out, his fingers intensely clenching down against the white sheets.

It felt so thick and full inside of him, and the way it was currently vibrating and pushing against every one of his tight muscles was so life-like that Yuu felt as if air had been punched right out of his lungs. And though it wasn’t pulsating hot like how Kouyou’s cock would have felt, Yuu was content with it for now, liking the way the toy drove itself crudely inside his ass.

As Yuu’s hands returned to his own cock, which had been straining against his stomach and dripping precum onto his skin all these while, Yuu stroked against his cock needily, his eyes closed and face scrunched up in ecstacy.

“Fuck… _fuck…_ fuckfuckfuck… I’m such a whore for doing this, ohgod…” Yuu moaned out lustfully, his cheeks turning bright red. And he allowed the sex toy to fuck him from behind for a while more, drawing out more and more sensual moans from Yuu, until the raven got tired of the teasing and decided to speed up things a little bit.

Pulling out the dildo rather reluctantly, out from his ass, Yuu changed his position, choosing to sit up this time, deliberately placing the vibrating dildo facing up straight on the bed. The raven positioned his body and spread his legs right above the toy, then sunk down his entrance right against the tip of the dildo, pushing himself down onto it slowly and gradually, until he’d fit the entirety of it inside of him.

“Fuck… It feels so good,” Yuu whispered, the walls of his muscles squeezing so tight around the dildo it sent him endless waves of pleasure. “Mmm…” And then he was lifting himself back up, desperately panting at the same time, the delicious drag of the dildo pulling out of him sending the raven moaning again.

Yuu repeated this a few more times, lifting himself up and down the fake cock, until he was establishing a firm riding pattern.

“Oh… oh… oh _yes_ , fuck yes! Fuck, fuck, fuck! K…Kouyou…!” Yuu begged, just as he humped the dildo harder and faster, over _and_ over again. His hands hastily reached down to fist his own cock as he sobbed out loud for Kouyou to fuck him harder, for Kouyou to cum inside of him, for Kouyou to split him right apart with his thick, big cock…

And god, Yuu was beginning to go so fast he thought he would _really_ be split open. He rode the sex toy like an expert, his hips picking up the pace more and more by the second. The vulgar sounds of his asshole slickly straddling the vibrating toy filled the room, accompanied by the squeaky springing of the mattress; and Yuu was beginning to wonder if Yutaka could hear him from the outside with all these loud combination of noises coming together. But _fuck_ , Yuu couldn’t care less if Yutaka found out right now. All Yuu wanted to do was cum, cum, cum, like the slut he was…

“Yuu! Dinner is ready!”

Jesus _fuck_. Couldn’t he wait for five more minutes?

Yutaka was yelling all the way from the kitchen, so Yuu at least had another minute to finish himself off. Yuu rode the dildo even faster, almost in tears at the insane amount of pleasure he was putting himself through, his ass clenching helplessly around the thick length of the dildo.

“Look at what you’re doing to me,” Yuu whimpered to the camera, stroking furiously at his cock.

And Yuu imagined Kouyou slapping a hand over his mouth right now, daring him to utter even a single word, to let Yutaka know he was being fucked like a whore by the blond CEO. And Yuu imagined Kouyou’s strong arms pinning Yuu down, still heavily thrusting inside of him, his voice coming out in low, angry growls.

_You’re mine, you understand? You’re mine… I’ll fuck you so hard you can’t walk the next day… You’re mine, sweet little princess_

Yuu imagined Kouyou releasing then right inside his ass, filling him up with his hot cum and dirtying Yuu as if the raven was Kouyou’s rightful property. And that very thought sent Yuu cumming, crying out over and over again how he had been such a bad babydoll to his Daddy. Warm semen spilled right over his hands, and his ass rippled and clenched one last final time around the dildo.

“Yuu? Are you alright? Dinner is ready!”

Yutaka’s voice was getting closer to his door now. Yuu got off the bed, ended the video recording, and stripped himself in record time so _fast_ he didn’t even know that was physically possible of him to do so. And after he’d gotten dressed and looked presentable enough to be seen by his roommate, Yuu was quickly tapping his phone screen and sending the video eagerly over to the blond, awaiting Kouyou’s reaction with wicked glee.

“Yuu, are you coming out for dinner or not?” Yutaka was right outside his door now, impatiently knocking as he called for the raven. “Dinner is ready!”

“I’m ready!” Yuu quickly proclaimed, pulling his door open in a breathless state to answer Yutaka.

Yutaka’s eyes swept across Yuu’s face with a dubious look, wondering why the raven was panting so heavily; but didn’t bother questioning it any further. And even if Yutaka had his suspicions about what Yuu had potentially been doing, the brunet rather not think about it anyway. He’d long acknowledged that the only way to deal with his feelings for the raven was to continue living his life peacefully and obliviously, and pretend Yuu was the innocent angel he’d always pictured him to be.

~

Yuu later received replies from Kouyou to his video in the midst of his dinner, causing the raven-haired to erupt into giggles once he caught sight of the texts, much to Yutaka’s confusion.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I came. Twice._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I’m pretty sure I’m going to go home right now and watch that same video and jerk off ten more times._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _:) You are such a naughty babydoll, Yuu._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I’m never letting any other man have you. You’re mine. Forever._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I love you._


	24. Chapter 24

Yuu had almost forgotten about the whole issue he had with the attorney until he received a reply from the man himself the next morning.

And almost got a heart attack in return.

 _One New Message  
_ **_So, you’ve decided to latch onto a rich man by getting into a proper relationship with him, instead of simply sugaring men anymore? Very clever. Takashima Kouyou has a stable hold on his CEO position, and he has the contacts to boot. I expect he’ll be in this position for a long, long time._ **

_One New Message  
_ **_That is, until people find out his new lover used to sell his services for money._ **

_One New Message  
_ **_Of course, I’m not the type of person to spread vile rumors like that. You don’t have to worry. I may be slightly bitter but I’m better than that. If you want to part ways, fine. It’s been nice spending time with you, Aoi. I’ll miss you._ **

His messages sounded threatening in the first half, and sarcastic in the second. Yuu wasn’t sure if the attorney was truthfully, _respectfully,_ accepting his request to part ways, or if the attorney was being sarcastic in doing so. Still, the man sounded genuine enough. Yuu hoped he truly was.

The bit about Kouyou potentially losing his position if people found out about Yuu’s profession disturbed the raven, though… It had crossed his mind once or twice before, but right now it was a real fear that could actually come to realization and potentially ruin Kouyou’s career. Yuu had to find time to talk to Kouyou about this – he couldn’t allow his past to inconvenience Kouyou in any way.

It would be even worse if the attorney, who Yuu was sure would have connections in the industry, spread such information about Kouyou’s relationship with Yuu to his business associates. It could wound the blond’s reputation and his company, and Yuu never wanted to be the cause of that.

Thinking about all of these got the raven even more frustrated. What was Yuu thinking, getting into a relationship with a man of such high stature like Kouyou? Yuu would only bring more harm and damage to him than anything else. It didn't matter if Kouyou felt happy with Yuu – was it really all worth it? Yuu was just a regular university student who _happened_ to be too happy to indulge in Kouyou’s filthy desires. And so what if Yuu was Kouyou’s type? Kouyou could always find someone like Yuu somewhere else. Anywhere. People would _kill_ to be able to have a one night stand with someone like Kouyou, much less participate in all his kinks. Even someone like Christine, who Yuu could never compare to…

 _Ugh_. Yuu was leading himself on a downward spiral again. Kouyou had convinced him time and time again that the only one meant for him was Yuu, but _what if Yuu thought otherwise?_ Was this relationship truly good for the both of them? Yuu only knew how to fuck things up, after all. He wasn’t good enough for anything. Except to have sex and spend other people’s money – that’s it.

Maybe he shouldn’t have gotten into this relationship with Kouyou in the first place.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Good morning, my sleeping beauty! I hope you have a wonderful day today. Missing you as I have my coffee. <3_

But Kouyou’s regular morning text was coming in again, and as Yuu picked up his buzzing phone and looked over Kouyou’s text…

Yuu felt his heart wrench at the very thought of having to leave Kouyou’s side.

And, without thinking twice, the raven was typing out the question presently echoing inside of his head, desperately seeking out the words he needed to hear from Kouyou right now.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _do i really make you happy?_

Kouyou probably sensed the raven wasn’t in the best mood, for his replies were hurried.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Yes yes yes yes yes yes yes_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _What’s wrong babydoll? Things were fine yesterday. What happened?_

Yuu sat up in bed, pulling his knees sourly to himself as he typed another reply to his boyfriend.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _idk. what will happen to you if people find out what i used to do? you’re a CEO, you shouldn’t get associated with me_

He really shouldn’t. Yuu should have just stuck to being Kouyou’s sugar baby. There would be no strings attached, and they could end things anytime they wanted. And Yuu could have prevented these feelings from developing even further. Because now they’d reached a point where Yuu didn’t know if he could live without seeing Kouyou for more than a week, and Yuu didn’t know if that was a good thing. Because now it _hurt_ to even contemplate a life away from Kouyou, when Yuu could have stopped this mess from happening in the first place.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _That’s bullshit. Yuu, you know I don’t fucking care about such things. So what if people find out? Nothing wrong with what you used to do._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _If you weren’t sugaring, I would never have met you. So I’m thankful you did._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Hush, alright? Stop thinking about such things, my flower. You know me. You know nothing matters to me except you._

Yuu managed a small smile at his words, seeking solace in the reassurance Kouyou brought to him.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _you really mean that?_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I mean it 101%_

Yuu’s smile grew wider. Kouyou always knew the right words to say, didn’t he?

Yuu had still his concerns, however…

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i’m just worried about your job. and company. so many people look up to you..._

This time, Kouyou took a while to reply.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Yuu, nothing’s going to happen to me. And even if something did, it wouldn’t be your fault. You forgot I was the one who begged you to get into this relationship with me? It wasn’t like you forced me into it or anything. In fact, sometimes I feel like I’m the one that actually pressured you into this. Yuu, I’m with you of my own accord. My heart belongs to you of its own accord. I made this decision myself. And I will accept any resulting consequences. I love you._

Perfectly sculptured words that only Kouyou would say. Yuu hugged his knees closer to himself.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i love you too. and i’d been so hesitant… so scared… to be with you. and now that i’m finally willing to accept the fact that i’m in love with you, i’m just so scared… it’s not the right decision_

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i don’t want you to get hurt because of me_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Wait._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Are you breaking up with me?_

Yuu’s heart had never trepidated so fast in his life reading Kouyou’s message. Breaking up? He would never do that to Kouyou… Oh, god. Was he misleading Kouyou with his words? Was he going in the right direction? He had only meant to bring up the matter of his past potentially hurting Kouyou’s future.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i’m not!!! i would never, kouyou you know i love you. i just don’t want to hurt you, that’s why i’m just… a little bit concerned_

Kouyou didn’t seem pleased.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Then why do you keep saying things like these? You’re hurting me like this too, you know. Saying things like you’re not sure about being with me, saying things like it’s because you fear you’re not good enough, or that you’ll only bring trouble to me. If I told you all of these words were hurting me, would you stop?_

Yuu’s heartbeat halted when he read that message. He hadn’t expected Kouyou to reply in such an aggravated manner, but at the same time he realized he hadn’t been sparing a thought for Kouyou’s feelings at all. Yuu had only been thinking about himself.

As he always had been.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i’m sorry… i didn’t know. i’m sorry i always neglect to think about how you feel about all of these_

Yuu didn’t feel enough at all.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i’m so sorry_

Fuck. Were tears actually welling up in Yuu’s eyes? How pathetic, the raven angrily thought to himself. It had only been a simple matter, and yet Yuu was overthinking it and blowing it out of proportion. But he was just _so_ fearful of so many things. And he couldn’t let any of them happen.

He couldn’t lose Kouyou like this. And the mere thought that he had made Kouyou mad because of his foolishness and indecisiveness just _frustrated_ him. Yuu never could do anything right, could he?

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _baby I didn’t mean my words to come off that way at all. I think we need to talk about this. Can I take you out for breakfast?_

Kouyou’s words came as such as a relief to the raven. Kouyou had always said he couldn’t ever be mad at Yuu, and Yuu wanted to believe that _so_ much. And Yuu wanted so badly to curl up in Kouyou’s arms right now, but the rational part of his mind knew that he couldn’t keep distracting Kouyou from his work like this.

He had already caused Kouyou enough trouble, for god’s sake. If Yuu’s goal was to stop himself from being such a detriment to Kouyou’s career, Yuu had to start by learning how to take care of himself, and to stop needing Kouyou to coddle him whenever he was upset. Times like these _really_ showed the difference between the raven and the blond – Kouyou was so much older, so much more matured, so much more independent. And here Yuu was, always acting like a child, always needing to be comforted.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _you have work. go to work. i’m ok_

…But then there was also the point of Kouyou never listening to him.

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _I’m driving to your apartment right now. See you in 10._

Yuu wanted to tell him _no, turn around and go back_ , but he couldn’t. It was awful how needy he was right now, it was awful how much he wanted to know that Kouyou loved him and needed him equally, and still wanted Yuu by his side no matter what. As much as Yuu believed he’d only been a burden, a stain in Kouyou’s clean record so far, Yuu wanted to believe at the same time that he was the only exception, too. Yuu wanted to believe he was – perhaps – something special for Kouyou. That even though he wasn’t of a valued status, even though he didn’t have a wealthy background, even though he had nothing to offer but his body and soul alone… Kouyou wanted him. Kouyou wanted him for _him_.

And Kouyou wouldn’t leave him, out of shame, out of embarrassment, out of humiliation; if Yuu ever so one day caused Kouyou’s reputation to go down the drain.

Yuu didn’t want to be anything of that sort to _anyone_. Especially not Kouyou. Especially not the person he loved the most.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _i don’t wanna go out_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Then change of plans. I’ll go buy some breakfast and come over to your place. What’s your apartment number? I’ll spend the morning with you until you’re okay. Wait for me, give me another 15 min_

Yuu smiled gently down to the text, promptly texting his lover his address without argument. Yuu really needed Kouyou right now, as much as he denied that fact to himself.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _what kind of CEO are you turning into by spending so much time with me? see, this is what i mean by ruining you_

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _Princess sweetheart... I run this company and I know best if I can afford to spend my morning with you or not. Stop worrying over me, alright? I have time._

 **_Kouyou:_ ** _And I’m not angry at you. I just want you to stop worrying over trivial things like these. But I’ll communicate all of this better to you once I have you in my arms. I love you, babydoll._

Yuu hadn’t realized, but the tears had stopped running long ago.

 **_Yuu:_ ** _I love you so much too, my handsome prince_

~

Yuu hadn’t realized he had fallen back asleep against the bedframe, his blankets wrapped tightly around himself; until he heard the gentle knocking against his door, stirring him up lightly from his sleep.

“Hey uh, your boyfriend’s here,” came Yutaka’s nonchalant voice. “And he brought breakfast for us. Is your door locked?”

“No,” Yuu murmured, his voice slightly croaking as he spoke.

Yutaka pushed open the door then and peeked his head in, casting a look of concern to the raven all curled up on the bed.

“You alright? I’m not sure why he’s here, but I figured something had to be going on. Do you want me to ask him to leave? He’s still in the kitchen.”

Yuu shook his head, burying his head into his duvets so as to shield his puffy eyes from Yutaka’s gaze. “It’s fine. You can get him to come in. He just wanted to come over to talk things out with me.”

Yutaka’s forehead creased in worry at his words. “OK, then. But I’m going to stay in my room so if you need anything, just tell me, okay?”

Yuu nodded silently, knowing the brunet must be severely confused by Kouyou’s sudden entrance in their apartment right now. The raven watched as Yutaka left to call Kouyou in, leaving Yuu’s door slightly ajar in the meantime. Yuu waited with bated breath for Kouyou’s appearance, contemplating the appropriate words to say once he came in. And when he finally heard the familiar shuffling of Kouyou’s footsteps, followed by the handsome sight of the blond clothed in his white dress shirt, his black tie fitted snugly around his neck, and his sleek hair combed back, Yuu had to resist letting out a sob of immense relief. It’d only been two days and he was already missing Kouyou so much.

“Hey,” Kouyou murmured, slipping in past the door and making his way to the side of the bed, his eyes gazing sweetly down to his raven lover. The older man sat himself down next to Yuu, wrapped his arms around Yuu’s smaller form, and leaned Yuu’s delicate frame against his shoulders. He then lowered his lips and kissed Yuu gently on the hair, snuggling his head down closely against the raven’s. “You don’t look good.”

Yuu bit his lip and buried his head into Kouyou’s shoulder timidly. “Just a little tired. That’s all.”

The blond frowned, his arms instinctively tightening around Yuu to offer more protection. “What happened? Why are you so upset suddenly? Things were fine yesterday.”

A small sigh escaped Yuu’s lips. It was all the attorney’s fault. It was the attorney, and his nicely worded threat, and Yuu’s tendency to fuck up when it came to managing things like these. But of course Yuu couldn’t tell him. No, he couldn’t tell Kouyou at all.

“I was just thinking about our future, I guess,” Yuu hesitantly murmured, averting his eyes at the same time to mask his white lie.

It seemed to work, because Kouyou’s lips were curling slowly into a smile, apparently pleased with the thought that Yuu had been worrying over the future of their relationship. Yuu’s words showed that the raven cared about taking their relationship a step further, which was something that Yuu knew would only warm Kouyou’s heart.

Yuu was a horrible, _horrible_ person.

“Yutaka and Takanori told me they saw the gala event on TV,” Yuu continued quietly, looking down to his bed sheets. “And I was worried. Because I’d gone out with many influential men before, and I was worried I would get recognized, and that you would get involved, too. Because no one knows we started out in a sugar relationship. Not even Akira…” Yuu’s fingers moved to grip Kouyou’s shirt to him for comfort. “And I’m just afraid I’ll ruin you.”

Kouyou let loose a sigh, finally understanding the situation. “So, this is why you’ve been feeling bad this whole morning?”

Yuu nodded slowly, squeezing his eyes shut. “I’m sorry. I’m so stupid.”

“Oh, sweetheart…” Kouyou raised a hand to Yuu’s hair, his fingers tenderly running down through his strands. “You’re not stupid at all. I’m happy you’re so worried about all of this. About me. Because it means a lot, you know? Yuu, you know I’m always so happy to hear about worrying over me. Even though it isn’t necessary. I can protect myself.”

Yuu flickered his eyes up anxiously to him. Trust Kouyou to always see the positive side to every situation. “But… But your career is at stake. And I really don’t want being with me to be a problem. Because you’re so clever, and you’re so capable, and you’re so… you’re perfect as your company’s CEO. I don’t want you to ever lose your job. And I want you to know of the consequences if you…” Yuu’s voice lowered into a reluctant whisper, his face turning away. “…if you continue to choose to stay with me.”

“Wait.” Kouyou’s face visibly darkened as he slowly registered Yuu’s words in his mind. “Are you… asking me to reconsider staying with you?” _God_ , he sounded so angry. It mildly frightened the raven.

Yuu loosened his grip against Kouyou’s shirt, realizing he was tapping into sensitive matters. “I… I’m not asking you anything, Kouyou. But if… if you want to be with me, you have to understand that…”

Yuu couldn’t say anything more, he was _so_ scared. Scared of making Kouyou mad. Scared of saying the wrong things that would result in Kouyou leaving him. Scared of changing Kouyou’s mind.

…So why was he still saying these words to convince Kouyou to do so?

“You might get into trouble,” Yuu finally gathered the courage to finish. “I… I never want you to get into trouble because of me, Kouyou… _Please_ …”

“So?” was all Kouyou said in response, undeniably unhappy with the way Yuu was deciding his feelings for him.

“So what if people find out? So, I can’t be happy for once in my life? Seriously, Yuu, you’re worrying for nothing. I don’t know what kind of man you think of me as, but if anyone dares to cross paths with me just because my lover used to work as a sugar baby, I’ll shut them right down. What does my lover have to do with how I conduct my work? Is it supposed to _humiliate_ me? Because I don’t feel humiliated, Yuu. I’m so happy with you. And I’m sorry, but I’m not breaking up with you for something so small like this. You need to realize that, alright? Takashima Kouyou doesn’t care about things like these. And because of that, you shouldn’t too.”

There was something so comforting about Kouyou’s anger.

“You’re willing to stand up for me?” Yuu asked quietly, looking doe-eyed up to the blond. “In case anything happens. I just… It’s not that I want to think otherwise, but… I love you so much. I’m so afraid of being a burden. Because you’ve dated all these amazing people, and there’s me, who barely fits into your world.” But then the raven was pausing for a moment, drawing in a deep, unsure breath, before speaking again, newfound determination appearing in his eyes.

“But _god_ , I’ll try. I promise I’ll try. If you’ll let me stay with you, I’ll learn all your business lingo and I promise I won’t stay useless like this. Because Takashima Kouyou can’t have such an incapable lover. I won’t embarrass you with my existence, I swear. I want you to be proud whenever you bring me out to places, whether it be gala events or restaurants or… _anywhere_. I promise I’ll try my best for you.”

Kouyou gradually relaxed at his words, his lips shifting slowly into a warm smile at the sound of Yuu’s words.

“ _Oh_ my sweet little princess,” Kouyou cooed, hugging Yuu tightly into his grasp. “You were never an embarrassment to begin with. Yuu, I chose to be with you. I chose to take you out. I chose to bring you to that gala event. It was my decision, and I don’t regret any of it one bit.”

The older man planted another gentle kiss against Yuu’s hair. “And everyone loved you, so I don’t know what you’re talking about. You don’t have to change into someone else just to live up any bullshit expectations of what an ‘appropriate’ partner for me should be like. Because for me, you’re more than enough. You’re everything. You’re better than anyone will ever be. And I wouldn’t have you any other way. Will you promise to remember that for me?”

Yuu’s heart danced around in happiness at what he’d said. “You… You really don’t mind? Because… Because if you mind, and you wanted to leave me before anything happens to you, I won’t hold it against you…”

Kouyou laughed at the idea. “Never. I’m never letting anyone else have you, remember?” The older man sunk his head down to press his forehead against Yuu’s, their noses briefly touching. “I can’t let anyone else have you. I’d _die_ if anyone else made you happier than I did. And I really don’t give a fuck about what anyone else thinks. I’ll keep you close to me, as long as you’re willing to give your heart to me. I’ll never let you go.”

Kouyou’s words put Yuu’s heart at such ease that the raven didn’t know why he was so worried before.

“Promise me you won’t worry about such things again,” Kouyou asked softly, eyes looking seriously into Yuu’s ones.

Yuu was so relieved by his words he could cry. “I promise,” the younger man breathed, smiling so widely to the blond it almost hurt.

~

They ended up getting breakfast shortly after, and the mood lightened up considerably after that. Yutaka declined to join them in the kitchen, preferring to stay in his room, though Kouyou had thoughtfully bought Yutaka’s share, too. Yuu couldn’t fault Yutaka for that, however. The brunet still harboured feelings for him, and Yuu wasn’t so sure if he was ready to be seated with the couple when it was basically subjecting himself through heartbreak the entire time.

“He still likes me,” Yuu explained quietly to his lover, just as he dug into his food. “Yutaka, I mean. I don’t think he’s as upset about you anymore, but I doubt he’d enjoy sitting with us.”

Kouyou nodded his head in acknowledgement. “I see. He appeared surprised to see me when I rung the doorbell, but he didn’t look annoyed. And he was definitely much nicer to me when he invited me in to wait for you. But I pretty much guessed he wouldn’t get over you too easily – he made his feelings very clear when he spoke to me last Saturday.”

Yuu sighed. “It’s not like I expected him to get over his feelings for me the minute I told him I didn’t return his feelings, but it just sucks to know that I’m continuously hurting my best friend this way. I really didn’t want things to turn out this way. I just wish I could come up with a solution to help him.”

Kouyou parted his lips as if he was going to say something, but he quickly moved to shut them, as if deciding against it. But then his eyes looked conflicted, and he was parting his lips open again, his voice coming out scared and rushed.

“Maybeyoushouldstaywithme,” Kouyou muttered, seemingly turning red-faced, head quickly turning down to look to his food, as if afraid of Yuu’s response.

Yuu could hardly hear him.

“What?” The raven asked, blinking obliviously to his lover. “What did you just say?”

“Um.” Kouyou took another spoonful of his food, still refusing to look Yuu in the eye. He seemed to have changed his mind about telling Yuu about it. “Nothing.”

Yuu raised an eyebrow. “Nothing?” It was so rare of Kouyou to be so shy with him. Hell, it was usually the opposite. Kouyou was always so confident, so sure of himself, and Yuu was always the one that was doubtful of his worth to him.

But here Kouyou currently was, reduced to nothing but pink cheeks and a lowered head.

“It’s nothing,” Kouyou waved it off. “Anyway, back to what we were going on–”

“Tell me what you said,” Yuu stubbornly said, placing both his elbows onto the table, propping his head up against the palms of his hands. “I wanna hear it.”

Kouyou turned even more self-conscious under his gaze. “It’s nothing, really, just a thought. I think we should just move on–”

“Tell. Me. Now!” Yuu huffed, remaining adamant.

Kouyou bit his lip and cursed silently under his breath. Yuu thought the CEO looked beyond adorable doing so.

“You wanted to help Yutaka get over his feelings for you, so I thought you could stay with me,” Kouyou admitted sheepishly, still too shy to look at Yuu as he spoke. “It was just a thought. It’d do good for Yutaka to have some distance from you, and it’d hurt less that way. And also…” Kouyou nervously bit his tongue, embarrassed to be confessing his feelings like this. “Maybe I just wanted an excuse to see you everyday. So… so I could go to sleep with you every night.”

Jesus christ. Yuu wanted to capture this moment and frame it up forever. He had _never_ seen Kouyou so awkward. It was rather endearing to watch, and to know Yuu could turn the handsome CEO this way.

“You are _so_ shy right now,” Yuu couldn’t resist his laughter. “Oh, god. If only Akira was here to see this.”

“Hey!” Kouyou finally raised his gaze back up to meet Yuu’s defiantly. “You are _not_ allowed to tell Akira anything about this. Akira already has enough blackmail material against me. I’m… I’m on a losing end, okay?!”

Yuu continued laughing. “You… You’re so cute. Why are you so scared of asking me to live with you? And yet you’re not afraid of yelling at your business associates, or being mean to your poor secretary. You are… _impossible_ to figure out, I swear.”

Kouyou frowned at his words, and simply stabbed silently at his food.

“It’s different,” Kouyou answered, a moment later, sighing helplessly at his lover’s question. “ _You’re_ different. I do what I feel is right in my position as CEO, even though my decisions can always be put up for discussions. But generally what I do is final – and people don’t want to get on my bad side.

But when I’m with you… I don’t have that power. And you control my heart. And it hurts a lot more to get rejected by you. So I… I’m careful when I ask you about these things.”

Yuu froze in his spot, clearly never expecting to hear an answer from the blond. _It hurts a lot more to get rejected by me?_ But Yuu wasn’t – he didn’t… Had Yuu been too cold to Kouyou in the past? It wasn’t like Yuu didn’t know how weak Kouyou was when it came to Yuu, but… hearing Kouyou put things this way made Yuu’s heart squeeze a little. He never wanted to make Kouyou so afraid of him.

It was funny, how Yuu and Kouyou were mutually afraid of hurting each other, only in different ways. Yuu didn’t want his past to be a cruel adherence to Kouyou’s future, and Kouyou didn’t want to force Yuu into doing anything Yuu didn’t want to – even though most of the time it was just Kouyou overthinking things. Hell, _most_ times they were both simply overthinking things. Imagining issues that weren’t there, and getting themselves upset over a hell of a nothing.

It was scary how similar they were when it came down to their worries.

“I’m really happy to hear that you want me to live with you,” Yuu quickly whispered, extending a hand out to reach for Kouyou’s one across the table. “I’m really happy to hear that, Kouyou.”

His older lover reciprocated the gesture, clutching Yuu’s hand warmly into his, interlacing their fingers closely against each other.

“Does that mean you’ll say yes?” Kouyou asked softly, a hint of nervousness still there.

Yuu didn’t have an answer for him rightaway. He loved the idea of living with Kouyou, but he wasn’t sure if that was the permanent solution to Yutaka’s problem for the moment. Yuu enjoyed having Yutaka as his roommate, and moving out just because the brunet still held feelings for him didn’t feel like a logical reason to do so. Plus, Yuu was positively certain that Yutaka would feel hurt if Yuu did so. It wasn’t as if love was a controllable thing, and it didn’t make sense for Yuu to ruin their living situation just because he wanted Yutaka to get over him. It would be a troublesome process for Yuu to move out, and for Yutaka to have to look for a new roommate again, and Yuu didn't want to subject Yutaka to that.

It was definitely something he would have to talk to Yutaka about, to see if the brunet was comfortable with such an idea. Yuu couldn’t see himself moving out until he was assured that Yutaka wouldn’t have his feelings wounded by Yuu doing so.

Yet at the same time, Kouyou was looking so hopeful about it…

“Could I have some time to think about it?” Yuu asked, a hesitant smile hanging upon his lips. “I love the idea, Kouyou, it’s just… I’m worried about Yutaka. I can’t decide this by myself. I have to talk to him about it.”

“Oh,” Kouyou barely masked his disappointment. “I understand. Just know that if you decide upon it, the door is always open for you, alright?”

Yuu nodded his head happily, still holding Kouyou’s hand tightly in his.

“You’re so greedy, wanting to see me everyday,” Yuu teased, cocking his head to the side, attempting to lighten up the situation. “As if you don’t see me enough already.”

Kouyou laughed, eyes abashedly looking down as he spoke. “I can’t help it. I’m always asking for more, when it comes to you. I’ll… never have enough of you.”

Yuu could hear how much he meant it in the silence.

Yuu answered back with a happy sigh. “I’ll never have enough of you, too.”

God _,_ this was so corny. _Too_ corny. But even as Yuu thought that, he was so grateful he had someone like Kouyou to be corny with.

Kouyou meant everything to him. And he hoped Kouyou realized that, too.

“This should be the time where you kiss me,” Yuu sulked cutely to the older man, blinking innocently to the blond.

Kouyou broke into several chuckles at the adorable sight of his younger lover. “Alright, princess. Anything for my little flower.”

And then he was leaning over, sealing their lips with a tender kiss, drawing out the perfect ending to their fairytale morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooorrry for the laate update! But I'm making it up for two chapters in a row. So forgive me? :D
> 
>  **tldr of these two chapters;** Kouyou/Yuu and Akira/Takanori are going to have a double-date, Yuu's lawyer sugar daddy sends him questioning messages, Yutaka still can't get over his feelings for Yuu, Kouyou finally gets Yuu to send him dirty photos and videos (lol I've been wanting to write this for a long time), Yuu gets into a breakdown because of how scared he is for potentially ruining Kouyou's career by staying with him, and Kouyou is a sweet romantic who wants Yuu to live with him. Except Yuu doesn't know if he can do that to Yutaka. So yeah.
> 
> Comments as always are sooo loved and I appreciate your thoughts on this story very, very much. Also, woo! 24 chapters! lol I always get so happy writing long stories. <3


	25. Chapter 25

“Text me when you get to work,” Yuu whispered, seeing his lover off at his apartment door, tipping slightly on his toes to peck a quick kiss on Kouyou’s cheek. Kouyou smiled warmly in return, patting Yuu’s head endearingly with his hand.  
   
“I will, my beautiful wife,” Kouyou responded with a tease, chuckling to himself. Yuu folded his arms stubbornly and stared back up to him. Kouyou only countered with another laugh. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t resist – you’re acting just like a real housewife, sending me off to work.”  
   
“Tease me any more and I will think twice about moving in with you,” Yuu sulked.  
   
Kouyou grinned. “You wouldn’t do that, would you? You wouldn’t disappoint your husband like that.”  
   
Yuu’s face only reddened. “You’re going to be late for work.”  
   
“I own this company, Yuu,” Kouyou laughed. “I  _can’t_  be late. And no one’s going to say it to my face. Well, except Akira, but I pay him his salary, so.” The blond looked so cocky saying that, too.  
   
“Stop making excuses and get to work already!” Yuu insisted, gently pushing at Kouyou’s shoulders to get him out the door. “I swear to god… I’m not marrying you if you’re penniless, you know!”  
   
Yuu did enjoy Kouyou’s company, he really did. But he’d felt bad enough for worrying Kouyou with his breakdown earlier this morning, and having also made Kouyou come all the way down to Yuu’s apartment to  _simply_ comfort the raven made Yuu feel even worse about this whole thing. Kouyou wasn’t just some ordinary salaryman – he was a full-fledged CEO, and Yuu had been distracting him too much with his own personal problems. Yuu definitely didn’t want to compromise Kouyou’s position as a CEO just because Kouyou felt the need to personally meet Yuu each time the raven felt down or upset. Yuu couldn’t do that to his lover.  
   
Kouyou let out an exasperated sigh, trying his hardest to contain his smile to himself. “Alright, I get it. I’ll go to work. I’ll do my best so I won’t become bankrupt and embarrass my wife.”  
   
Yuu made a loud ‘tsk’ at his statement. Kouyou didn’t have to phrase it  _that_  way. It wasn’t like Yuu was being serious about leaving Kouyou if he was penniless, either. Yuu would love Kouyou no matter what happened.  
   
“Just go already,” Yuu pouted, and then he was tipping on his toes again to kiss Kouyou one last time on the cheek. “There. Your final goodbye kiss.”  
   
Kouyou’s grin only got wider at the kiss, and he enveloped Yuu into a tight hug. “ _God_ , I love you so much.”  
   
“Okay, normally I wouldn’t intervene, but you guys have been standing at the door for ten minutes,” Yutaka’s voice from behind quickly cut them short. Yuu jumped at Yutaka’s sudden intrusion, and he turned his head back to see his brunet roommate leaning against the wall, his arms folded, an eyebrow raised up.  
   
“I just wanted to know if anyone was actually planning on leaving or not,” Yutaka shrugged, eyes looking away.  
   
Yuu then darted his eyes back to Kouyou, sending him an accusatory look. “It’s all Kouyou’s fault! He won’t step out the door.”  
   
Kouyou feigned innocence. “But I – I couldn’t possibly, not… not when you look so cute giving me all these goodbye kisses… It’s  _your_ fault.”  
   
Yuu squinted his eyes to him, in disbelief of what he was hearing. Was that even a legit reason why?! “It’s my fault… for being cute… That’s your reason?! Really, Kouyou?!”  
   
Kouyou nodded furiously, as if firmly believing Yuu was the cause of the problem. “Mm-hmm. It’s your fault for seducing me like this. I feel like you’re rooting my body to the ground with your every kiss and word. You’re the one that’s making me stay instead.”  
   
Yuu’s jaw fell open, outraged at the absurd (yet romantic) allegation; but then he shut his jaw again with annoyance. Then he was turning his back to Kouyou, deciding to seek help from Yutaka instead. “Yutaka! Make him go away!”  
   
Yutaka looked amused by the sight before him, his eyes gazing over to the older blond rather disinterestedly. “Well, Kouyou, I’m not one to get involved in other people’s affairs, but I also don’t think CEOs turn up to work in the afternoon. Maybe you should listen to Yuu.”  
   
Kouyou just shook his head with a chuckle, acknowledging he was way overdue in leaving. “Yutaka, take care of the princess, alright? Make sure he doesn’t cry himself to sleep.”  
   
Yuu rushed to dispute that, embarrassed. “I do  _not_  do that!”  
   
“I’ve always been taking care of him,” Yutaka said, his voice quieter this time.  
   
Kouyou wasn’t sure how to respond to that; wasn’t sure if Yutaka was being assertive, or purely providing reassurance to Kouyou that Yuu would be in good hands with him. Either way, Kouyou took it as his cue to leave.  
   
“I’ll text you, babe,” Kouyou reluctantly bade goodbye, gazing bittersweetly to his lover. “See you later this week.”  
   
“I’m not giving you another goodbye kiss because I’ve given you so many already,” Yuu obstinately replied. “Bye-bye.”  
   
Kouyou only laughed, nodding in understanding. And then he was finally leaving out the door, leaving Yuu in Yutaka’s presence.  
   
~  
   
Yutaka was the first to break the silence, his face looking more thoughtful and his voice sounding more gentle now that Kouyou was gone.  
   
“What did he come over for?”  
   
“I um,” Yuu averted Yutaka’s gaze. He didn’t want to have to bother Yutaka with his anxiety problems too, considering he’d already spent a good amount of time fretting about them to Yutaka yesterday. Yuu felt bad enough he’d bothered Kouyou, already.  
   
“I kinda felt bad this morning so I texted Kouyou about it. He got worried so he came over and talked me out of my thoughts. I feel much better now.”  
   
Yutaka reacted surprisingly calm about it, and didn’t pry further. “Oh. That’s good. I was afraid you both had a huge fight or something along those lines. I was shocked seeing him ringing the door so early in the morning.”  
   
Yutaka paused for a moment in thought. “Come to think of it, he’s the first sugar daddy you’ve had that has come to our apartment. Or boyfriend, for that matter. It’s strange.”  
   
Yuu smiled at the revelation. “It is, I guess. It’s like two worlds colliding. Aoi and Yuu’s world colliding. I never thought that would happen.”  
   
Yutaka’s face gradually loosened up into a smile as well. “It’s just nice to see you happy. I’m glad he’s been treating you well.”  
   
Yuu’s lips spread into a comforted smile at Yutaka’s words. The brunet was reacting  _way_ better than expected. Yuu was positive Yutaka still harboured feelings for him, but perhaps the brunet  _really_ was putting in effort to cast those feelings aside in a bid to feel happy for the raven. Yuu couldn’t be more thankful for such a best friend.  
   
In fact, maybe this even meant that Yutaka wouldn’t be so opposed to the idea of Yuu moving in with Kouyou…  
   
“There was something Kouyou asked me earlier,” Yuu asked, slightly hesitant, playing with his fingers nervously to himself. “I told him I’d talk to you about it first.” Yuu had thought he’d wait for awhile before broaching the matter with Yutaka, but now that the moment felt right…  
   
“Hmm?” Yutaka frowned at how apprehensive Yuu was acting suddenly. “What is it?”  
   
Yuu drew in a deep breath, looking down to his hands. “Um,” God, Yuu hoped he wouldn’t offend Yutaka by asking this. “Kouyou asked me if I’d like to move in with him.”  
   
There was the expected silence. Yutaka didn’t what to say for a while, and Yuu didn’t dare look up to his roommate to analyze his face for a reaction. Yuu felt bad enough he was doing this to the brunet, and he didn’t need to witness Yutaka’s sadness to worsen his guilt.  
   
“That’s very… sudden,” Yutaka finally answered, after a long second of pause. He swallowed his saliva thickly down his throat, shocked by the suddenness of it all. “So… what did you tell him?”  
   
Did that mean Yutaka didn’t like the idea? Yuu’s heart pounded so fast he could barely string words together. “It’s… I… I didn’t want to make a decision until I knew you were okay about it. I mean, we've been living together for so long, and if I leave, you’d have to get another roommate. And I needed to know that you wouldn’t get hurt by me leaving… or anything like that,” Yuu replied, biting his lip. “I just want to know what you think about all of this.”  
   
Yutaka looked conflicted, a mix of emotions splashed across his face. Yutaka wasn’t overly ecstatic by the news, Yuu could tell.  
   
“Do you want to live with him?” Yutaka asked, and the dejectment in his voice made it clear Yutaka was assuming the worst about this situation – that Yuu couldn’t stand living with Yutaka anymore.  
   
But as much as Yuu felt bad for the brunet, Yuu didn’t want to lie to him about wanting to move in with Kouyou either. “I do, Yutaka. I love him, but at the same time, I do have my qualms, too. I’ve gotten so used to your company, and I really enjoy living with you… I really do. I’ve only known Kouyou for so short a while, after all. It’s a relatively big decision to make. And I want to see him everyday, but…”  
   
Yutaka seemed to reach an understanding, and his lips curved into a frown of their own accord. “Was Kouyou the one who suggested this? Asking you to move in with him?  
   
“Wha–?” Yuu was shocked by the question. Yutaka sounded unexpectedly bitter – when Yuu thought Yutaka was starting to feel better about all of these. About Kouyou. About their relationship.  
   
“You just don’t seem very ready to move out,” Yutaka shook his head. “Is he forcing you to make decisions you don’t want to make, Yuu? Because if you need me to step in and help you out, I will, Yuu. I don’t want you to do something you don’t want to.”  
   
Yuu didn't know how to answer that. Was Yuu truly not ready? Or was Yutaka just being paranoid again? What if Yutaka was being biased in his opinion because he wanted Yuu to stay… or was Yutaka seeing right through Yuu’s heart again?  
   
But Yuu always trusted Yutaka’s advice about everything that was going on in his life, and Yutaka always knew what to do.  
   
“You’re still scared,” Yutaka continued. “Right? About this whole relationship with Kouyou. Afraid it won’t work out, that it’s moving too fast, that it’s not right. And Yuu, you're worried about how I feel about all of this, but I really think you should be more concerned about the way  _you_ feel. And I really want to make sure you’re comfortable with every decision you make about Kouyou.”  
   
Yuu really did appreciate Yutaka’s concern; the brunet always looked out for Yuu way much more than Yuu did for his ownself. But as much as Yuu was doubtful of this new arrangement, there was a part of Yuu that wanted to try this, too. There was a part of Yuu that wanted to take his relationship with Kouyou a step further; there was a part of Yuu that longed to see Kouyou every second of the day, and moving in with him could solve half of that problem.  
   
He just needed to convince Yutaka he would be okay.  
   
“I think you’re misunderstanding me,” Yuu sighed. Did he accidentally give off the impression he wasn’t looking forward to such an idea? Perhaps his approach in wanting to reassure Yutaka just how much he enjoyed living with him was backfiring on him. “I really do trust Kouyou. And it’s true, Yutaka… I  _do_ think it’s too fast. But I love him so much, and… and he loves me back, too. And Kouyou has never treated me badly, so I know I can trust him. I’m not sure what will happen if I do decide to move in with him, because that could change things but – but you’re my best friend as well, and I want to make sure you’re okay with that decision, above anything else. So I won’t make my choice until you make yours.”  
   
Yutaka looked more at peace, after hearing Yuu’s words. And maybe those were the things Yutaka needed to hear right from the start – to know that Yuu genuinely was affirmative of this decision.  
   
“Yuu… I’m going to be honest with you. I’d definitely be sad if you moved out to stay with him. I’d be happy for you, but I’d still be sad, nonetheless. But maybe it’d be better this way, because it would help getting over my feelings for you so much faster. And maybe that’s what Kouyou’s thinking too – I would be worried about my lover being around a best friend who’s still in love with him, if I was in Kouyou’s place.  
   
But listen – if you really want to move out and be with him, I can’t stop you. But I want you to know that I’m not going to look for a new roommate anytime soon, alright? I’m going to keep your room open for a while. It’s not like I need the extra cash, anyway. And I want you to know you can come back anytime you want, in case your moving situation with Kouyou doesn’t work out. Maybe he’s horrible to live with. Or he’s some god awful clean freak who doesn’t allow you to do  _anything_  to his place, at all.”  
   
Yuu was immensely grateful to hear those words. “Kouyou  _really_ is very clean,” Yuu smiled softly to himself. “Maybe he does have an OCD after all.”  
   
Yutaka emitted a low laugh. “And we’re college students, after all. I wonder how he’d react to pizza boxes and research papers strewn everywhere.”  
   
Yuu laughed along with him, feeling a warm tingling in his heart. Yutaka and him had spent far too many nights like that, especially when it came to cramming for projects and tests.  
   
“I’d miss you,” Yuu murmured, years of memories quickly washing over his head.  
   
A forlorn smile tugged at Yutaka’s lips. “I’d miss you too, Yuu.”  
   
And Yutaka meant it with his eyes, he really did.  
   
Yuu sighed at the very thought of leaving Yutaka alone. “And who would be around to take care of you and your unhealthy eating habits once I’m gone? What if you study yourself to death?” Seriously, Yuu couldn’t trust Yutaka to eat and sleep properly on his own. Yutaka slept against the kitchen table half the time.  
   
Yutaka chuckled. “Come on, Yuu, I’m not  _that_ bad.”  
   
Yuu was skeptical. “Maybe I should come over every few days to check what happened to this apartment while I was gone.”  
   
Yutaka laughed at the idea, not protesting it. “Maybe you should,” he agreed, smiling affectionately to the raven-haired.  
   
Yuu found himself coming face to face with Yutaka’s sweet, dazed smile, and eyes so authentic and honest they almost made Yuu melt. Yuu realized at that moment that Yutaka had never so readily showed this soft side of him to anyone – not Tora, not Saga, not Kouyou –  _only_ Yuu.  
   
Yuu’s heart squeezed at the reminder that Yutaka still liked him.  
   
_So_ much.  
   
“Maybe I shouldn’t,” Yuu hurriedly said in a soft whisper, his eyes turning away. The reason he was moving out was partially to help Yutaka get over him, after all. It wouldn’t do good to return too often and be around Yutaka constantly if that was the primary reason he was looking to move out in the first place.  
   
Yutaka seemed to understand what Yuu was getting at.  
   
“Whatever makes you happy,” Yutaka’s smile tightened, realizing he’d given away his emotions too freely once again, and then he was taking a step back as well. “I have class in half an hour. I’ll go prepare.”  
   
“Mmm,” Yuu said.  
   
Yuu wished so badly things didn’t have to be this way.  
   
~  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _At work. Boo._  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _Akira side-eyed me for staying out the whole morning, but hell, he knows if he says anything I’ll slam him right down._  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _Miss you. <3 Text me back when you see these messages~_  
   
Yuu sat down against his bed, clutching his phone tightly in his hands. True to his word, Kouyou texted him immediately once he’d reached work, and though Yuu was the one that had been driving Kouyou out of the apartment to work earlier on, the raven was no doubt missing his lover already.  
   
Yuu still felt churning dread in his stomach because of his talk with Yutaka, but Yuu thought he’d tell Kouyou about his decision to move in only when he saw Kouyou this Saturday. Yuu knew his answer meant a big deal to Kouyou, and he didn’t want to casually do it over text. Plus, Yuu wanted to see Kouyou all happy like a puppy, anyway. Kouyou always got overly excited when Yuu told him about such sentimental things, and Yuu wanted to be there to see it happen in person.  
   
**_Yuu:_** _akira has reason to be mad at you -__-_  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _:( Aaw princess. You know it hurts when you aren’t on my side. </3_  
   
**_Yuu:_** _i’m on your side!!!! i always am. idiot -__- go do your work_  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _Ouch. You know I’m only teasing you… You sound all riled up. Did something happen?_  
   
Oh. Was Yuu being too rude in his texts? The raven just didn’t feel like he was in the mood to be too lovey-dovey to Kouyou. Besides, he still felt bad for having made Kouyou take time off work just to meet with him. Yuu knew Kouyou only had good intentions, but wasn’t Kouyou neglecting work a little too much?  
   
…Maybe Yuu needed to sleep this off.  
   
**_Yuu:_** _nooo… i’m just worried, dummy. u keep texting me when u have work_  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _Oh. If it makes you feel better about this, I’ll get back to work. Sorry_  
   
Yuu sighed. Kouyou was misunderstanding him again. He couldn’t deal with this – just not now.  
   
**_Yuu:_** _i promise i’ll text you later, ok? i think i’m going to take a nap._  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _Okay babe. I’ll talk to you later. Have a good rest._  
   
Yuu  _really_ didn’t want to ruin Kouyou’s work in any way because of their relationship.  
   
~  
   
“I’m really excited for our double date,” Takanori said to Yuu, the next day when they were having lunch together during their break. “Akira took me out to lunch yesterday. The other time, it was only a small coffee date – but this time he brought me to a  _real_ restaurant. I couldn’t even believe the menu prices myself! I wonder if this is where these people eat on a daily basis. Not that I’m complaining… Though, I guess you’d be pretty used to it already, right? You’ve been with Kouyou for some time now.”  
   
Yuu always found Takanori’s fawning over Akira’s wealthy lifestyle too reminiscent of the way he used to do so for Kouyou. It was strange how accustomed Yuu had gotten to being spoiled by Kouyou like this, when he hadn’t even known of the blond’s existence until recently.  
   
“I made Kouyou eat at a fast food restaurant once,” Yuu fondfully smiled as he recounted the memory. “That was funny. He looked totally out of place.”  
   
Takanori widened his eyes curiously. “I wonder how Kouyou’s like. You’ve described him briefly to me, and Akira mentioned a thing or two about him, but I still don’t know anything about him other than the fact that he’s… uh, hot and rich. And your boyfriend.”  
   
Yuu was surprised by the sudden interest in his lover. “Well… What do you want to know?”  
   
Takanori shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know. What is he like? Why did you choose to get together with him? Other than the obvious reasons, of course. Good looks and wealth can only take him so far.”  
  
Yuu picked at his food, chuckling a bit, caught off-guard by the question. “Well… I’m not really sure where I should start.” Yuu really didn’t. How could he even put Kouyou into words? “Kouyou’s pretty sweet… He texts me every morning to wish me a good start to my day, and he never takes too long to reply to my texts. He’s very busy as a CEO, but he always tells his secretary to make available slots in his schedule so he can use his free time to take me out. And he never gets mad at me no matter what… He can’t fault me for anything, even though I’m clearly the one that fucks up sometimes. Kouyou’s really…” Yuu smiled gently at the thought. “He’s really like a prince. I still can’t believe he’s real, sometimes.”  
   
And suddenly Yuu felt like he’d fallen in love with Kouyou, all over again.  
   
Takanori grinned at how lovestruck Yuu was acting. “You’re in deep.”  
   
Yuu released a helpless sigh. “I guess I am, huh? But enough about me. How’s Akira?”  
   
Takanori giggled at the mention of his new beau. “He’s so…  _dumb_.” Yuu was surprised by the description. Takanori continued to elaborate. “I’m sorry, but, he’s so hot… and so dumb. He keeps trying to impress me with all these dumb jokes, and he keeps intentionally rolling up his sleeves whenever he knows I’m looking. I always laugh when I realize he’s doing something just to impress me again – I’m not exactly sure if this man knows how to date – but then the waiter comes and Akira’s totally professional. He’s speaking in all these French and whipping out his credit card, and I’m like…  _holy shit_. And then I can’t decide which side of him I like better. Hot Akira or dumb Akira. Maybe both.”  
   
Yuu laughed, imagining the hilarious sight painted by Takanori’s words in his head. He could never picture Akira so flustered, but then again this probably proved Yuu was never a potential love interest for him. Akira did look like the type that drew strict boundaries when it came to his best friends’ lovers, on the things he could do and things he couldn’t do. And to think Yuu had even been suspicious of Akira trying to hit on him at the start…  
   
Still, it was funny how Akira – a man who looked like he had way too much pride most times – could go to such lengths of cracking lame jokes  _just_ to impress a date. Akira just looked too confident and assured of himself to have to dumb himself down for  _anyone._ Yuu wondered if he would get to see this side of Akira during the double date.  
   
“Akira’s a good person,” Yuu said, nodding. “He must be into you if he’s going to such lengths to impress you. I really do hope things work out between you two.”  
   
“Thanks, Yuu,” Takanori smiled. “I’m trying to see how it goes. So far, he seems like a normal person, so no warning signs yet. Plus, if he’s best friends with your perfect prince charming, I’m going to go ahead and guess that they’re both on the same wavelength. So Akira should be a prince, too, right?”  
   
Yuu laughed at Takanori’s conclusion. “I hadn’t thought of it that way… but you’re right!” To think Yuu and Takanori would become their princesses… Not a bad thought, actually.  
   
“And you can’t go wrong with a prince,” Takanori snickered. “So I’m going to tease Akira a while longer. I think he thinks I’m bored by him, honestly.”  
   
Yuu shook his head, smiling. “Is it because you’re playing your hard-to-get game with him? Aww, Taka, you’re teasing the poor man.” Yuu couldn’t blame Takanori for that, however. Yuu knew he had his fair share of teasing Kouyou on their first few dates, too.  
   
“It’s just so amazing to be able to watch men like  _that_  crumble so easily when you have them wrapped around your fingertips,” Takanori grinned. “I won’t go too far, of course, but Akira gave me a bouquet of roses yesterday and I told him how much I loved them… and how much I loved lilies  _too_. I had never seen someone’s face turn so white like his did. I seriously had to resist bursting into laughter right then and there.” Takanori cackled maniacally, then added as an afterthought: “I don’t even really like lilies.”  
   
Yuu almost choked on his saliva from laughing. “Oh my  _god_. Takanori, you’re cruel.”  
   
“Hey! I did give him some credit for it,” Takanori pouted. “I wonder if he’ll turn up with a bouquet of lilies this Saturday.”  
   
Yuu giggled. “I can’t believe you two. You guys are too cute. If I did something like that to Kouyou… I can’t even imagine what would happen. These guys really do all they can to impress, don’t they?”  
   
“They’re older, silly,” Takanori pointed out. “They’re afraid of falling behind. We’re young and we have time to move on – they don’t. Men at their age take courtship pretty seriously.”  
   
Yuu had heard the same things from Akira previously. Yuu’s age gap with Kouyou was definitely something Yuu noted, but never thought too much about. Sure, it did intimidate Yuu several times, on occasions like the gala event especially, but Yuu never thought about it like how the main reason Kouyou was taking this relationship so much more seriously was because of his age. Hadn’t Akira mentioned that men at their age were looking for more steady relationships, and he was afraid Yuu might have different priorities considering he was much younger?  
   
Suddenly Yuu felt bad for getting mad at Kouyou yesterday because of how much attention Kouyou was devoting to him, instead of work. Kouyou was doing all he could to show Yuu he cared for him, and Yuu was getting mad at him for doing so.  
   
“They really do take it seriously, huh,” Yuu murmured, thoughts drifting back worrisomely to Kouyou.  
   
Before he knew it, he was picking up his phone and sending a cute text over to Kouyou, hoping he hadn’t hurt Kouyou in any way because of yesterday. Kouyou had sent the raven his usual morning text earlier today, but after a few texts back and forth, the conversation quickly died when Yuu said he had to get to class. Kouyou, probably afraid Yuu would be annoyed at him if he continued texting the raven, just wished Yuu well and said he’d get back to work.  
   
Yuu hadn’t texted Kouyou yet since he was busy with Takanori, but Yuu did feel like Kouyou was starting to back off messaging Yuu too much in case it pissed Yuu off. And Yuu never meant for Kouyou to feel that way. He was only worried he’d been distracting Kouyou from work way too much.  
   
**_Yuu:_** _hey!!! busy afternoon at work? :) hope ur doing great <3_  
   
Yuu’s pulse wouldn’t stop racing until Kouyou replied – which was only less than a minute later. It was amazing how quick Kouyou was in his replies sometimes.  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _Hey princess :) Been busy clearing paperwork. It’s fine, just slow and boring. How about you? Is class over yet?_  
   
**_Yuu:_** _mmhmm! having lunch with takanori now. we can’t wait for the double date. also he’s been telling me stories about his dates with akira kekeke. i can’t stop laughing!_  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _Hahaha, they must be interesting. Tell me about them when I meet you. I really need blackmail against Akira, he has way too much dirt on me._  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _By the way, have you thought about what you want to do on Sat before dinner with them?_  
   
Yuu frankly hadn’t thought about it yet, but there was something the both of them could always do if they really had no plans…  
   
**_Yuu:_** _…i wanna do you :)_  
   
Kouyou’s response was slightly delayed this time.  
   
**_Yuu:_** _wah? you disappeared~_  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _I was busy spitting out my coffee… but that seems like an idea. You’re getting more daring, babydoll ;)_  
   
**_Kouyou:_  **... _Except I’m already planning to take you home after dinner, so I don’t think I want us to wear ourselves first. Plus, Akira has already walked in on us once. If we turn up to dinner with sex hair, I doubt he’d ever let me live this down._  
   
Yuu laughed. Kouyou really was tired of giving Akira more blackmail material, wasn’t he?  
   
**_Yuu:_** _fiiiine. you know what? you always were talking about taking me lingerie shopping. wanna do that?_  
   
Kouyou’s answer barely took a second.  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _YES_  
   
Yuu rolled his eyes  _so_ bad. Men were all the same.  
   
**_Yuu:_** _-__- I see the enthusiasm._  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _:))))) You just made my day, babydoll. Hehehehehehehe_  
   
…Jesus Christ.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've updated another chapter too hehehe


	26. Chapter 26

The long awaited day finally came. By Saturday, Yuu had gone three whole days without seeing his CEO lover and he was  _dying_ to be held in Kouyou’s arms again. After making sure he’d packed enough clothes for the weekend (staying over at Kouyou’s place for the weekends was starting to be a thing) and dolled himself up nicely for the date, Yuu was well on his way out of the apartment, grinning ear-to-ear at the thought of seeing his handsome CEO once more and hearing his husky voice call Yuu his babydoll over and over again.  
   
Kouyou was always early, so even as Yuu made his way down to the carpark below his block ten minutes before the agreed time, the blond’s sports car was already parked to the side, ready and waiting for Yuu’s arrival.  
   
Yuu briefly remembered how Takanori was so fascinated by Akira’s car and lavish lifestyle, that it made Yuu pause to savour the moment before him for a bit. Yuu had gotten so used to the routine of getting picked up by Kouyou’s sports car and being treated so luxuriously by his lover, that the university student was afraid he was beginning to take Kouyou for granted.  
   
Yuu was too excited to see Kouyou again to stop for too long, though. He hastened his steps to the Lamborghini, pulled the car door open and slipped in delightedly, waiting to be welcomed with a passionate kiss from Kouyou like usual.  
   
The kiss never came. Kouyou appeared deeply engrossed in a phone conversation, and he barely even glanced to Yuu to acknowledge his arrival – only fleetingly gestured for Yuu to buckle on his seatbelt.  
   
Yuu’s smile immediately evaporated off his face and he strapped the seatbelt over him rather indignantly, silently beginning to fume at the cold treatment. Was Kouyou way too busy for him now? And to think Yuu was  _so_ excited to see him, too…  
   
“I understand what she wants, but tell her it’s impossible,” Kouyou’s tone was commanding and firm, and his forehead set in deep, unhappy creases. “Look, if it’s not enough, let’s raise it up to forty thousand. Would that be enough to appease her?” Oh, this looked bad. Yuu had never seen Kouyou so frustrated. The older man was practically  _boiling_. Kouyou was never the type to raise his voice and shout, but it was the way in which he accentuated his words slowly and spoke in such an authoritative voice when he was angry that it truly displayed his wrath. It always chilled Yuu to the bone.  
   
“No. I’m not conceding. I want this solved by Monday. Talk to her again and tell me what happens.” Kouyou snapped. Yuu tried to listen in and make out the words of the muffled speaking coming from the phone’s end, but to no avail.  
   
“Ask her what she wants, but tell her  _my_  terms,” Kouyou growled, raking a hand up his hair in an aggravated manner. “Yes. We’ll have another discussion soon. Thanks.”  
   
Yuu  _really_  shouldn’t find Kouyou so hot when he was angry like that, but god, the way the blond reacted so strongly to work matters, and took charge like a real boss whenever he had to, just made the raven… squirm a little in his pants at the sight. Kouyou was dressed in a tight black buttoned-up shirt this time – the shirt tight enough to show off how built his chest was – paired with light grey pants. Kouyou’s weekend outfits were always slightly more casual than the suits he wore to work, but they still radiated a sense of class and status around him. Kouyou never dressed anything less than how a proper gentleman would, and Yuu  _loved_  it.  
   
…Though he was still upset Kouyou hadn’t greeted him since he entered the car yet. Yuu was so used to getting pampered with Kouyou’s kisses every second he was with him, that to be receiving no attention from the blond left Yuu feeling rather dry and unwanted. Ugh. Were these signs that Yuu was seriously turning into a spoilt princess? At first, he had only been playing along with Kouyou’s term of endearment, but it looked like Yuu really was shaping up to be a needy princess… what with his recent behavior of late.  
   
After Kouyou finally ended the conversation and put down his phone, Yuu waited with bated breath for Kouyou’s next move.  
   
He wasn’t disappointed. The older man was turning to face Yuu in an instant, his stoic and vexed face quickly spreading into a soft smile for his little flower.  
   
“Hey,” Kouyou called gently, a hundred and eighty degree personality change from before, his eyes basking happily in the sight of his younger lover. Yuu beamed proudly underneath his gaze, glad that Kouyou was finally rewarding him with some proper attention. “I’m sorry I took so long on the phone. Some work issues cropped up last minute, and people are being useless and incompetent as usual.” Kouyou said it so casually and lethally that Yuu had to stifle a giggle. Kouyou really was a demanding boss.  
   
Yuu cocked his head to the side and stared up cutely to the blond. “Was the matter really important? Even more important than meeee?”  
   
Kouyou grinned, knowing exactly what the raven was doing. And Kouyou could never  _ever_  resist that behavior, no. In his eyes, Yuu was the most adorable thing in the universe. Kouyou was weak to those eyes and that voice.  
   
“You know you’re the most important thing to me,” Kouyou’s voice lowered to a more serious whisper, and he raised his hand up to the side of Yuu’s face, thumbing the raven’s cheek. “I’m really sorry if you thought otherwise.” And then he was tilting his head and leaning over, slowly devouring Yuu’s lips into the long anticipated kiss Yuu had been waiting for.  
   
Yuu fluttered his eyes shut to reciprocate, his lips parting open quickly to accommodate Kouyou’s tongue slipping in.  _Oh god_ … Yuu relished in the hot taste of Kouyou’s organ, his body trembling of its own accord as Kouyou spelled his apology out against Yuu’s tongue, kissing Yuu so sweetly and vehemently Yuu forgot what he was even mad at Kouyou for in the first place.  
   
Kouyou always had this magic to make Yuu forget himself.  
   
As the softness against his lips slowly pulled away, Yuu drew open his eyes to meet Kouyou’s dark brown ones, the blond’s gaze to him so intense and in love that it made Yuu smile. It was times like these that Yuu knew Kouyou would  _never_ abandon Yuu for anything. The man truthfully, earnestly, loved Yuu more than life.  
   
And Yuu loved him the same too.  
   
“I’m so happy to see you again,” Kouyou started off in a whisper, his hands still against Yuu’s face, his fingers caressing past Yuu’s skin gently, as if he were to be handling porcelain. “I know we always text, but nothing beats seeing you in the flesh. Plus, I get to see how you feel when I’m with you. I get anxious when I can’t decipher your thoughts over text.”  
   
Yuu knew Kouyou was most probably referring to Yuu’s reluctance to reply to Kouyou’s texts as much as before. It wasn’t so much that Yuu was angry with Kouyou, but the more the raven-haired thought about it, the more he felt bad he was taking up so much of Kouyou’s time when the older man really should be working. As a college student, Yuu had more time to spare as compared to Kouyou, who had a company to run. And Yuu was trying to be a better lover, he really did. He wanted to be someone who could help Kouyou out, not only in terms of love, but hopefully in terms of his career as well.  
   
Though Yuu hadn’t figured out how he could do that as of yet (he was an English major, for god’s sake) but the raven-haired didn’t feel good knowing he was always bothering Kouyou with his trivial personal problems, and he wanted to strive to be more independent and more thoughtful for the blond.  
   
“I’m just worried I’m distracting you too much from your work,” Yuu admitted with a sigh, anxious eyes boring up into Kouyou’s ones. “I feel bad enough already that you’ve taken so much time out to meet me this week alone. I bet even Akira notices the difference. Because you are a workaholic, aren’t you? And I’ve been distracting you ever since you met me.”  
   
Kouyou countered with a sigh of his own. “You’re worried about issues that don’t even exist again. Babydoll, I pride myself on being a good multi-tasker, so don’t worry. I do admit though, that sometimes when you text me, I do get too dazed and happy and I can’t think of anything else but you. Hmm… Now that I think about it, it does sound pretty detrimental,” the blond took a thoughtful pause. “Well… It doesn’t matter. Point is, when I’m away from you, texting is the next best thing I can do to curb my longing for you. So it would really make me sad if you stopped communication with me altogether.”  
   
Yuu blushed slightly under Kouyou’s choice of words to describe how the older man felt when he was away from the raven. ‘Curb my longing for you’?  _Really?_ This man sounded as if he came right out of a romance novel at times…  
   
“I’m not going to stop texting you, idiot,” Yuu huffed, folding his arms and looking away – albeit still with blushing cheeks. “I just…” Yuu couldn’t even find the right words to say.  
   
“Of course, if you’re tired of texting me, we can always stop,” Kouyou wistfully looked away, sighing sadly to himself, putting on a dramatic act. “I guess I’ll just stare at photos of you in my spare time, or something.”  
   
“The only photos you have of me are explicit looking ones!” Yuu replied, embarrassed at the thought.  
   
Kouyou looked up regretfully. “I guess if I can’t have the real person to talk to, I’ll be left with no choice but to look at lewd photos of my naked lover over and over again…”  
   
Yuu’s red cheeks swelled up so much he could burst. Trust Kouyou to come up with a threat like that.   
   
“Hmph. You’re so cunning!” The raven lamented, refusing to look at Kouyou.  
   
Kouyou broke into low laughter, enjoying how much he could tease his younger lover.  
   
“I even told Takanori how good of a boyfriend you were. I now take all of it back,” Yuu let slip, glaring heatedly to Kouyou.  
   
Kouyou’s interest was perked. “Oh? You’ve been flaunting me off to your friends?” And for some reason, that fact delighted Kouyou, whose face was brightening up like a little child that had just been handed a piece of candy. Yuu wanted to smack that face  _so_ bad. How dare he look so pleased with himself!  
   
“I have not! I… just told him because he wanted to know,” Yuu tried to explain himself. Then his tone lowered and the raven was bashfully looking down to his lap, shy and timid because of the words that were about to leave his lips. “And… You’ve been so good to me, it’s hard not to flaunt you off. You’ve been the perfect lover.” Being sweet and romantic was always Kouyou’s thing – Yuu wasn’t too used to it yet.  
   
But Kouyou had begun to notice that Yuu had been growing more and more vocal of his feelings for Kouyou ever since the gala event happened, and Yuu’s displays and words of affection for the older man of late were driving Kouyou  _crazy_. Kouyou always had to resist the urge to pin Yuu down right then and there and ravage his body to pieces because of how cute Yuu was acting. Seriously though – it was turning into an actual task by now. Kouyou really thought he should be awarded a medal for all the self-control he’d managed to get himself under so far.  
   
“It means so much to me whenever you say these things,” Kouyou sighed, smiling, leaning his face in once more and pressing his forehead lovingly against Yuu’s own forehead. “You’ve been so perfect to me, too. I really wish we didn’t have a dinner appointment later on because I’m really in the mood to push you down in the back seat of the car right now.”  
   
Yuu widened his eyes, caught off-guard by the statement, and turned his head away, flustered. “And you say these things so nonchalantly, too.”  
   
Kouyou made a laugh. “Weren’t you the one begging me to take you in the backseat of my car the other time? Anyway, I won’t tease you anymore. We have a task to do, remember? I’m supposed to take you lingerie shopping.” And Kouyou’s eyes were gleaming  _so_  enthusiastically as he said that, Yuu found himself breaking into a laugh.  
   
“You’re so excited about this, it’s annoying,” Yuu huffed, folding his arms. “I can’t believe I agreed to your perverse desires.”  
   
“Hey, you were the one who enticed me first, wearing such sexy lingerie all the time,” Kouyou pouted. “You suggested this, too.”  
   
Yuu just grumbled. “Anything to make you happy.” Kouyou’s grin got wider. Yuu was showing his thoughtfulness for the blond again.  
   
“So, where should we head to first? Do you have a loyal lingerie store you frequent?” Kouyou asked casually, as if he was asking Yuu a simple question of where he wanted to eat. Though, in Kouyou’s case, he  _truly_ had plans of feasting on Yuu, so…  
   
“Uun. I can’t believe I’m answering this,” Yuu whined.  
   
“It’s fine if you don’t want to answer. I’m all for experimenting. I got my secretary to compile a list of S&M centric shops in the city.” Kouyou, once again, was casually remarking as he reached for his phone to scroll through his emails. “If I’m not wrong, we have one ten miles away from here.”  
   
Yuu gawked at his lover, incredulous at what he’d just heard. “You got your secretary to compile a list of sex shops in the city?!” Jesus, Yuu had  _way_ underestimated Kouyou’s excitement for this. “I’m not exactly sure that’s what secretaries are hired to do.” And Yuu wasn’t sure he could ever face Kouyou’s secretary again.  
   
“Mmhmm,” Kouyou wasn’t even listening to him at this point. Scrolling further down his phone, Kouyou appeared too preoccupied with choosing a shop for the both of them to head to. “Hey, this shop called Forbidden Pleasures sounds interesting.”  
   
“Enough!” Yuu’s face paled at the name he’d just heard. “Fine. I’ll bring you to the shop I go to. No S&M shops. Okay?!”  
   
Kouyou wasn’t about to argue – not when he was getting to see Yuu in more lingerie, for god’s sake.  
   
~  
   
Except that things didn’t exactly go according to his plan.  
   
“We can’t try on panties in the dressing room,” Yuu’s sentence alone single-handedly dashed every bit of Kouyou’s hopes and dreams. Kouyou looked on, mortified, as Yuu stood before racks of pretty-looking undies – decorated with lace and ribbons and any fancy thing you could possibly think of – whilst unable to try any of them on.  
   
In the end, Yuu navigated Kouyou to take him to a nearby mall, and they had entered a decent and reputable-looking lingerie shop that seemed empty for the day. The shop assistants appeared to recognize Yuu right off the bat and welcomed his patronage, though the sight of Kouyou standing next to him as well surprised them. It was the first time Yuu had brought anyone with him to the shop, and they hadn’t expected Yuu’s boyfriend to be so mature and…  _hot_. Though it definitely explained Yuu’s taste in lingerie to them now...  
   
Kouyou tagged along behind Yuu like an overly zealous puppy, while the raven flicked through the shop’s new arrivals and tried not to look embarrassed by Kouyou’s  _very_ obvious excitement.  
   
_So, when are you going to try them on?_ Kouyou had asked, after five minutes of browsing, growing slightly impatient Yuu hadn’t made any move to walk to the dressing room yet.  
   
Yuu then snorted at his question, turned to him, a sly smile curving up on his face. “You know we can’t try panties in the dressing room, right? It’s not sanitary.” Yuu didn’t know why he hadn’t warned Kouyou of this fact before, but then again he always thought it to be common knowledge.  
   
And listening to that very sentence was the moment Kouyou felt like his whole life was over.  
   
“But…” Kouyou gaped, leering at the undergarments on display, trailing his eyes back to Yuu’s body longingly like it was forbidden fruit. “But… then how am I supposed to see these million pieces of lingerie on your body?” Kouyou’s face expression made Yuu felt like he’d just crushed a puppy’s lifelong dream.  
   
The shop assistants standing around them broke into soft giggles at the blond’s blatant disappointment. It was plain as day to them why Yuu was such a frequent customer at their store, now.  
   
“If you purchase them for your boyfriend, he can try them on for you in the dressing room,” One of the girls tipped Kouyou off. “We’re having a sale! 5 for $25.”  
   
Kouyou’s face lit up once more at the wonderful suggestion. He didn’t think he’d ever paid underwear  _that_ cheap for his own briefs, even. Kouyou could easily afford all of them.  
   
Regaining his cool composure now that Kouyou had found the solution to his problem, the older man turned to Yuu and confidently gestured to the underwear racks, saying in a rather commanding tone: “Choose 20.”  
   
Yuu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.  
   
“Make that 40,” Kouyou coughed loudly as he spoke, hoping only Yuu – and not the shop assistants – caught that.  
   
Yuu laughed. He’d been slightly embarrassed by Kouyou at first, but the blond was acting  _way_ too cute about simply buying lingerie now. Suddenly Yuu wasn’t regretting bringing Kouyou here anymore, not when he saw how happy it was making Kouyou. It was so rare that Yuu got to do things for his CEO lover, and to know that he could make Kouyou happy in such small, simple ways left the raven feeling very satisfied.  
   
“Take your time,” Kouyou added, taking a step back to allow Yuu to have his space and take his picks. “But uh, not too long. If we’re going for 40. Actually, have you considered making it 60–”  
   
“How about you choose some for me, too?” Yuu asked sweetly, blinking up rather innocently to the blond. Kouyou was bound to get bored if he stood around watching Yuu like this, and if Kouyou had some say in what lingerie Yuu was going to wear, it would definitely make their next love-making session more exciting. “I mean, my taste is getting kinda boring. I’d love to see what you choose.”  
   
Kouyou inhaled in a deep breath upon hearing the invitation, like he just heard he’d hit the jackpot. “Really? Because, you know, I’ve had a couple of ideas, and I really want to see you in a couple of–”  
   
“Just go choose them,” Yuu laughed, waving Kouyou off, who was quickly scurrying off eagerly to the back of the shop.  _God_ , Kouyou was such a pervert, and he was openly showing it too, in a public place no less. Yuu didn’t know how he was going to come back to this shop after this trip to face the shop assistants ever again.  
   
~  
   
Yuu thought Kouyou would take this seriously, he really did.  
   
And maybe Kouyou took it a  _little_ too seriously. Because as Yuu stood in the middle of the spacious fitting room, with a couple dozen of racy costumes hanging off the racks, ranging from cheerleader costumes to sexy sailor costumes (all Kouyou’s picks), Yuu found himself staring blank-faced to his lover standing in front of him, who was currently looking all too pleased with himself.  
   
“I thought we were only getting panties,” Yuu said in an accusatory tone, pointing to the multiple provocative-looking costumes hanging before him. “What are these?”  
   
Kouyou didn’t even show any sign of remorse. “I personally really like the cheerleader one. I think the skirt’s short enough.”  
   
Yuu narrowed his eyes to him. “Takashima Kouyou!” Jesus, this man…  
   
“Okay, fine. I  _might_  have gone overboard. But it’s not like I can’t afford them,” Kouyou attempted to justify himself. “I’m prepared to buy everything for you, so… And didn’t we talk about roleplaying the other day? I’ve been wanting to see you in a skirt ever since we talked about you being my princess.”  
   
Yuu sulked, seeing he had no choice in the matter in the first place. “If we’re prepared to buy everything, then why are we still in the dressing room?”  
   
Kouyou looked incredulously to Yuu, like Yuu wasn’t seeing the obvious. “I thought it was mutually agreed upon that you would model them for me.”  
   
Yuu sighed, acknowledging there was no changing Kouyou’s mind at this point. “Fine. I’ll wear the cheerleader one first since you like it so much. You so owe me.”  
   
Kouyou’s eyes twinkled as his younger lover conceded to his wishes easily, and he watched like a hawk as Yuu undressed himself slowly with flaring cheeks. Kouyou was certain today would be one of the best days of his life. His shy and pretty lover was readily stripping himself of his clothing to put on lingerie Kouyou personally chose for him… and all for Kouyou’s eyes, only, too.  
   
Actually, the more he thought about it, the more Kouyou was certain he would be going back against his word of  _not_ doing anything sexual to Yuu before their dinner date.  
   
~  
   
Of course, Kouyou was right.  
   
The skirt  _really_ had been too short against Yuu’s thighs. It barely covered his butt, and it didn’t help that Yuu was wearing white lacey panties of his own underneath the yellow cheerleading skirt. Yuu looked too perfect in his role as the haughty, pretty little cheerleader Kouyou had to teach a lesson to, and the older man  _just_  couldn’t resist.  
   
Not when he had Yuu pressed up against the mirror like this, Yuu’s cheerleading skirt all hiked up around his waist, his white panties pulled down and his ass cheeks parted open for Kouyou’s easy fondling. Yuu’s hair had been tied back into a high ponytail – Kouyou’s request – and the poor raven was trying his best to muffle his moans as Kouyou positioned his lubed tip right against Yuu’s entrance, ready to penetrate him.  
   
“D…Daddy…” Yuu found himself begging, pushing back impatiently against the blond.  _Fuck_. Yuu really hadn’t meant to give in to the blond like this, but he’d felt too aroused, dressing up so sluttily like this for the older man. And Kouyou hadn’t been able to hold back either, because when Yuu dressed himself up and teasingly bent over to allow Kouyou to take a look at how good the raven’s ass looked in this skirt, the man had ended up pinning Yuu against the mirror a second later, his rough palms smacking Yuu’s butt cheeks painfully.  
   
And the rest was history.  
   
Yuu jolted up from his thoughts when he felt Kouyou start to gently coax his cock in, the blond beginning to pant heavily as he pushed himself inside of Yuu deeper and deeper by the minute. Yuu couldn’t move much in his position; he only writhed agonizingly as Kouyou slid himself all the way in, occasionally groaning at how tight Yuu’s ass felt around his cock.  
   
“You’ve been such a bad babydoll, fuck,” Kouyou cursed, calloused palms grabbing firm hold of Yuu’s ass cheeks. “Look at how round you are. So perfect, always ready to be fucked…”  
   
“Uunn…” Yuu whimpered, his blushing face pressed right up the mirror, his eyes shrouded in a hazy daze of lust. “I just want Daddy to start teaching this cheerleader a lesson already…”  
   
Kouyou exhaled loudly upon hearing that, a hand reaching up to grab tight hold of Yuu’s ponytail. Yuu moaned out delightedly in pain.  
   
“Always saying such vulgar things, princess. I  _really_ think you should be taught a lesson. Especially after I caught you filming yourself fucking against a dildo because of me.”  
   
Yuu giggled demurely at that memory. “That’s what happens if Daddy’s not at home~”  
   
Kouyou was immediately hissing at the teasing statement, and he pulled his cock out without warning then thrust it back in swiftly. Yuu moaned with his mouth wide open, encouraging the man to go faster.  
   
“So big, Daddy…” Yuu whimpered, feeling Kouyou’s thick cock fill him up to the brim.  
   
“Fucking slut,” Kouyou answered, slapping Yuu’s ass crudely as he pulled himself back out and slammed right in, faster this time like how Yuu requested. Yuu bucked his hips up to meet Kouyou’s thrusts, moaning over and over again at how good the older man’s cock felt, and Kouyou watched as Yuu’s perky ass jiggled every single time Kouyou slammed back in furiously, skin slapping against skin.  
   
“Uunn… So good…  _fuck_ …!” Yuu cried out loud, allowing his lithe body to be easily manhandled by the taller man. Kouyou didn’t ever slow down in his thrusting, not even when he was lifting one of Yuu’s legs up and placing it over his shoulder, giving him the opportunity to fuck Yuu in deep angles he hadn’t explored before.  
   
“Oh  _fuck_  oh _fuck_  oh  _fuck_ Kouyou! Right there!  _Yes_!” Yuu was almost screaming, at the exact moment Kouyou was grazing his prostate, and the blond had to slap a hand right over Yuu’s mouth then so as to silence the quivering raven.  
   
“We’ll get kicked out of here if they know we’re fucking in their dressing room,” Kouyou warned, though it secretly exhilarated him to get Yuu so worked up and then threaten him to keep silent like this. “So be a good babydoll and keep quiet, understood?”  
   
“Mmmf,” was all Yuu could manage, nodding as obediently as he could. Kouyou  _loved_ exerting dominance over him like this, Yuu could tell, and he was too happy to oblige the blond and submit to his desires willingly.  
   
Kouyou fucked his lover hard and rough, mindful of the fact that the longer they spent cooped up in here, the more suspicious it would look. Yuu couldn’t bother to even think about that aspect, his mind clouded with pleasure, his one hand gripping the wall for support while his other hand slipped under his skirt to grasp a good hold of his cock.  
   
He jerked himself off to the pace of Kouyou’s thrusts, small whimpers and cries leaving Yuu’s dainty mouth still, and he was so lost in how good it felt each time Kouyou fucked roughly into him that he couldn’t do anything else but beg for more and more and  _more_.  
   
“Nnn…  _nngh_ … Daddy’s always so thick,” Yuu moaned, half-lidded eyes gazing to the mirror he was leaning against in a bid to catch Kouyou’s expression.  
   
_Oh_ , Kouyou always looked so hot like this, with his eyebrows furrowed in concentration and his face sweaty and his sleeves all rolled up, showing off the defined veins on his arms. Kouyou always couldn’t hold back his pleasured expressions when he was fucking Yuu like this, his eyes shut and his lips parted in low satisfied groans. And he never stopped thrusting back and forth, his cock deliciously dragging in and out of Yuu’s slick asshole.  
   
Yuu could cum just seeing Kouyou so concentrated on fucking him like this, as well as from hearing the delightful noises that left the blond’s mouth,  _fuck_.  
        
Then Kouyou was increasing his pace like never before and suddenly fucking Yuu so fast the raven’s eyes were falling to a close again, almost crying at how good and fast Kouyou was going. Kouyou was approaching his release, he was sure of it. Yuu soon felt warm liquid filling him up from behind, proving what he’d thought true.  
   
“Oh Yuu… my sweet princess… you’re so great,” Kouyou panted incoherently, throwing his head back as he milked out every single drop he had left inside of Yuu. “So great, Yuu, mm… my babydoll… always so sexy for me…"  
   
Yuu moaned as Kouyou filled him like this, and the knowledge he was acting like such a cheap whore made Yuu move his fingers against his cock faster. But then Kouyou, noticing Yuu hadn’t cum yet, hastily reached his own hand over and wrapped his own palm around Yuu’s cock, seizing it and expertly began stroking Yuu off.  
   
“Uunn… Kou…” Yuu whined at the contact, urgently snapping his hips up and encouraging for Kouyou to go faster. Kouyou’s hand – so large and firm and  _so_ much friction – always felt better around his cock. “Please… I want…”  
   
“Princess,” Kouyou silenced his pleas with a tender kiss upon the lips, sliding his tongue in and kissing Yuu harder and more merciless this time – a complete contrast from the gentle way he had kissed Yuu in the car. Yuu found himself going dizzy at the intensity of the kiss, and he soon felt himself short of breath. The lack of air, combined with Kouyou’s coarse and experienced hand around his cock, led the raven to feel a building pressure in his stomach in no time, quickly leading him up to his orgasm.  
   
Yuu shuddered as he came right into Kouyou’s hand, his whole body shaking in pleasure. Everything became a mess after that. The raven was reduced to helpless moans and whimpers, and a cum-stained outfit. Yuu snuggled right up to Kouyou’s chest as per his usual after-sex routine, and mewled for plenty of kisses and cuddles. Of course, Kouyou wasn’t able to resist at first, not when Yuu stared up to him with those doe-looking eyes and blushing cheeks and held a pout so adorable Kouyou no longer knew what to do with himself.  
   
But after giving in to Yuu’s tenth kiss, the blond was sighing and drawing his lips away, shaking his head to the raven.  
   
“We’ve spent half an hour in here. They  _must_  know we’re fucking.”  
   
Yuu was still sleepy and too happy basking in the aftereffects of his orgasm that he didn’t care. “But you’re buying so many things from theeemm. Just give them a big tip when we walk out or somethiiinggg.”  
   
Kouyou sighed once more, fingers gently playing with Yuu’s hair. How was he supposed to  _not_ give in to Yuu like this? “Looks like I do. Well, it’s not like I didn’t expect this wouldn’t happen anyway. I was pretty sure I wouldn’t be able to control myself once I saw you in those clothes.” He smiled fondfully to Yuu as he said that.  
   
Yuu nuzzled right into Kouyou’s chest. “So, at the end of it all, I guess the blame goes to you.”  
   
Kouyou didn’t even protest his argument. “I guess it does.”  
   
Yuu pouted at the lack of resistance Kouyou was putting up. “You’re no fun.”  
   
Kouyou just laughed, eyeing the raven thoughtfully. “We have to go out now, babydoll. I have to pay for these clothes and um… you have to clean yourself up.”  
   
Oh… Right. Yuu had forgotten the cum on his stomach and thighs until Kouyou reminded him. That immediately woke the raven up.  
   
“I don’t know why I’m always allowing you to dirty me when we’re out in public,” Yuu huffed, looking down to his wrecked self with a rather pitiful gaze.  
   
“Maybe because we enjoy it,” Kouyou suggested as a matter-of-factly.  
   
Yuu defiantly glared to him. “I wasn’t looking for an answer!”  
   
“Well, I’m pretty sure this isn’t going to be the last time I’m fucking you outside of home,” Kouyou smirked. “And I would like to point out that the previous time when I fucked you at my office, it had been your idea, too.”  
   
“It totally was not!”  
   
“Says the princess who’s covered in cum,” Kouyou teased.  
   
“And whose damn fault is that!”  
   
“But you’re very pretty when you’re like this. Speaking of, hold on, I need to get a picture of this…”  
   
“Aah! Sexual harassment!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so so sorry this update took so long!!! to make it up, I reaaally wanted to give you guys three chapters at a go but I could only do two for now first. rest assured the next chapter is coming very soon!!!
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed the development of SA so far!!! :D:D tell me what you guys think! (also, I couldn't resist cheerleader Yuu again, sorry... I have a serious kink :D like Kouyou :D am I Kouyou, truly? probably...)
> 
> <333333 see you soon!!!!
> 
>  **PS:** please read my latest UruAoi manga recommendation [here](http://sweetlolixo.tumblr.com/post/120345271259/feng-yu-jiu-tian-manga)!!!


	27. Chapter 27

If Yuu could compile a list of top ten most embarrassing moments in his life, now would definitely be one of them. Yuu couldn’t hide his face enough when Kouyou was paying for all the lingerie at the cashier for the raven. Yuu had very thoughtfully chosen  _only_  ten new panties he thought were cute enough, but Kouyou had chosen a whole bunch of other kinky lingerie, so much so that Yuu was starting to wonder if he had spoiled Kouyou rotten, since he was the one that had introduced Kouyou to the idea of him wearing lingerie from the very beginning.  
   
Yuu had been with some seriously pervertic men before, but Kouyou just sealed the deal for him. Was it really true then that the more powerful and handsome you were, the more fucked up your sexual desires were? Yuu silently began re-evaluating everything he knew about Kouyou… Kouyou should be grateful he was so hot for a pervert.  
   
“It’s only a bunch of skirts and sheer babydoll dresses and thigh garters,” Kouyou defended himself, noticing the concerned look on Yuu’s face. “I just want to pamper my princess, that’s all.”  
   
It wasn’t like Yuu minded, since he  _did_ find most of the lingerie Kouyou had chosen for him pretty cute, but Yuu didn’t feel like going down without a fight. Besides…  
   
“I’m never going to finish wearing all of them.” Yuu folded his arms stubbornly, staring to the pile of lingerie that was currently having their price tags scanned by the cashier. And _god_ , each of them didn’t come cheap, too, and Kouyou was so casually paying for all of them as if they cost nothing at all (in Kouyou’s defense, it probably really didn’t matter to him). Still, Yuu would never have thought of paying so much for lingerie before. In the past, when he shopped for lingerie on his own, buying five pairs of cute underwear was already considered a luxury to him. He couldn’t justify buying so much lingerie at one shot.  
   
“If you feel like you can’t finish wearing all of them, then I guess we just have to have sex more often,” Kouyou answered in a rather indifferent tone, shrugging as if his idea was only the most natural course of action they should take to solve the problem.  
   
The girl at the cashier giggled so much at Kouyou’s reply that Yuu wanted to dig himself a hole to bury himself in right then and there and never come out ever again.  
   
“We have sex everytime we meet,” Yuu whispered, outraged at Kouyou’s blunt reply, his face hot from embarrassment. He elbowed Kouyou gently whilst keeping his head down, unable to even look at the girl at the cashier anymore.  
   
Keeping his poker-face on, Kouyou tried his hardest not to laugh at his lover acting so shy.  
   
“Maybe after every round of sex, you could change into a new costume, then,” Kouyou suggested once more.  
   
…Yuu was going to die of  _humiliation_  at this rate.  
   
~  
   
Kouyou ended up tipping the shop staff a hundred dollars each for all their trouble, and they subsequently left the shop with two huge shopping bags. They’d spent so much time at the store that it was now the appointed time for their dinner date, which Yuu was thankful for since the sex had worn him out and he was now  _famished_.  
   
They were soon back in the car, en route to the restaurant Akira had made a dinner reservation at. Apparently Kouyou and Akira had discussed about it and settled on a famous Italian restaurant that the both of them hadn’t brought Yuu or Takanori to before.  
   
“I’m looking forward to meeting Takanori,” Kouyou spoke as he drove on, casually glancing over to Yuu in the passenger seat. The raven had started re-applying eyeliner against his eyes, since the sex from before had messed up part of his make-up and Yuu was certain that Takanori, who was an ultimate beauty and fashion guru, would notice.  
   
“Takanori’s very nice,” Yuu commented without thinking, still looking into the mirror installed inside the car, his hand firmly fixated on lining his eyes neatly. “He’s a very haughty and independent type of person. And he’s attractive, too.”  
   
Kouyou smiled at the description, finding it all too familiar. “That sounds like you.”  
   
“Wha–?” Yuu turned to look to him, surprised. “I’m haughty and independent?”  
   
“Mmm,” Kouyou said. “You’re always stubborn and you don’t like me helping you. But you’ve been opening up to me lately, which is something I appreciate.”  
   
Yuu was puzzled at Kouyou’s deduction. If Kouyou called him haughty he could understand – but independent? Yuu felt like he’d been too clingy and needy of late, so much so that it was even irritating himself.  
   
“I don’t feel independent enough,” Yuu looked away, slightly ashamed. “I’m so weak. It’s… It’s been something that’s annoying me.”  
   
Kouyou laughed. He’d long thought Yuu would feel that way. “Oh, princess. It’s okay to feel weak at times. It’s a human emotion.”  
   
Yuu frowned to him. The blond sounded like he was lecturing him. “I still don’t see your point.”  
   
The older man simply offered him a sweet smile. “You know, the only times when you feel weak are the times when you’re trying to make someone else happy, you realize that? You’re scared of hurting people you care about, but you always closet your own emotions away when it comes to yourself, and refuse to let anyone in. Yutaka told me you were fond of doing that.”  
   
Yuu’s eyes widened in surprise. “Oh… I didn’t know Yutaka said these things to you.” What else had Yutaka said to the blond? Was this why Kouyou had looked so affected after that one conversation with the brunet?  
   
“He really cares for you,” Kouyou said, his voice quieter this time. “Yutaka. Sometimes I wonder if I hadn’t come into the picture, maybe you’d have gotten with him instead. He’s not a bad person, isn’t he? He’s just a man in love.”  
   
Yuu’s heart sunk to his stomach at the mention. All the guilt for not being able to return Yutaka’s feelings were coming back to him again. The raven was shocked that Kouyou had come round his thoughts on Yutaka and no longer looked at him as a threat, too.  
   
“He doesn’t deserve someone like me,” Yuu sighed, placing his eyeliner down. “I really hope Yutaka can find someone better.”  
   
Kouyou’s eyes gazed lovingly to Yuu, his tone resolute and firm as he spoke. “He has to. Because you’re already mine, and I’m not letting you go.”  
   
Yuu’s heart leaped within his chest, and he smiled bashfully to himself at what he’d just heard from the blond.  
   
“I only hope you can continue opening yourself up to me like this,” Kouyou murmured, one of his hands leaving the wheel to reach for Yuu’s one. “Because I love you as a person, dependent or not. In fact, I’m rather fond of the idea of you depending on me entirely. So depend on me as much as you want. I’ll always be here to support you.”  
   
Yuu’s smile widened, his heart fluttering again at such sincerely meant words. He allowed Kouyou to clutch at his hand warmly, their palms touching, their fingers interlacing. Kouyou had  _completely_ won him over.  
   
He still couldn’t resist teasing Kouyou, though. “You know… Your words could come off as romantic, if I didn’t already know how much you were into S&M. You just want me to depend on you so much so you can manipulate me in bed. Pervert.”  
   
Kouyou sighed, still smiling. “You know what I really mean, babydoll.”  
   
Yuu beamed happily to him. “I do, Kouyou.” And then he was squeezing Kouyou’s palm.  
   
_I really do._  
   
~  
   
Once they had reached their destination, Kouyou was quick to look into the car mirror and give himself a glance-over.  
   
“Does my hair look messy?” Kouyou asked, frowning as he brought a hand up insecurely to his hair. “Do I look like I’ve just had sex? If Akira notices, he’ll bring it up the whole time during dinner, I swear.”  
   
Yuu giggled at how vain Kouyou was suddenly acting. Kouyou  _never_ acted narcissistic, despite how good he looked all the time. Yuu was starting to wonder if Kouyou even had to put in any effort at all when he dressed himself up on a daily basis. The man barely wore make-up, but his dark eyes were always so dazzling and his jaw so chiseled. It was amusing to see Kouyou so self-conscious like this.  
   
“You look really handsome,” Yuu cooed, reaching his hand over to give a light brush at Kouyou’s hair. “And your hair doesn’t look messy at all. I don’t think Akira can tell.”  
   
Takanori, on the other hand…  
   
“Great,” Kouyou grinned, then leaned over to kiss Yuu swiftly on the lips. “We should get going now. Akira’s never late, and I have a feeling they’re already waiting in the restaurant. We’re overdue our appointed time by five minutes.”  
   
Yuu had to stop himself from rolling his eyes at Kouyou’s remark. These businessmen really were uptight about punctuality. Granted, time probably meant everything to them, seeing as every minute of their time equated to money, but Yuu shuddered to think what would happen if a client turned up late at a meeting with them – even by five minutes. Yuu was certain Kouyou would be livid, since he treated his work so seriously. And although Yuu had never been late to a date with Kouyou before (Yuu was usually too excited to meet him to  _even_ fathom being late), Yuu wondered what would happen if he turned up to a date half an hour past their meeting time.  
   
Would Kouyou get mad at Yuu? Or would he make an exception for the raven?  
   
Then again, Kouyou had never flared up at Yuu before. Yuu was beginning to doubt there was anything in the world that Kouyou could ever get angry at Yuu for.  
   
They left the car hastily after Kouyou had parked it, and afterwards entered the restaurant hand-in-hand; the older man anxious to get to their reserved table as soon as he can.  
   
The Italian restaurant turned out to be a building on its own with two full stories, and seeing as how it was large enough to host a banquet, Yuu was sure it was another one of those first-rate restaurants that charged hundreds of dollars for a meal.  
   
After giving Akira’s name at the front desk, the server led the both of them up the stairs, to a crowded floor full of elegantly attired guests dining around many round tables. Majority of the guests looked mature, in their late 30s or above, and Yuu was back to feeling like he stuck out like a sore thumb in such an environment, knowing he and Takanori would probably be the youngest – and poorest – here.  
   
Yuu had thought they’d be dining around one of the many tables here, but the server before them appeared to be ziplining his way across the floor, manuveuring Yuu and Kouyou all around the many tables until he had led them out to the balcony, where a glass sliding door separated it from the rest of the floor.  
   
Outside, it was serenely quiet. The glass door helped tune out the buzz and chatter from the inside, and provided exclusivity to those seated on the balcony. It also gave a splendid overview of the city, in all of its stunning bright lights and bustling nightlife. If you didn’t fancy that view, you had the option of gazing up into the nightsky and admiring the million twinkling stars and constellations, too.  
   
It was the perfect romantic getaway for any couple in love.  
   
Yuu was surprised to see no one else occupied on the balcony, only them. There was only one table filled up and Takanori and Akira were already seated there, engaged deep in hushed conversation. Akira was dressed in a casual white dress shirt, sunglasses hanging off from the front, matched with black pants; while Takanori complemented his boyfriend’s outfit with a long white printed shirt paired with tight jeans, finishing off his look with a fashionably sleek and black cardigan.  
   
Akira appeared to be saying something funny to Takanori, for Takanori was immediately bursting into giggles afterwards, shaking his head disapprovingly at what he’d just heard. The both of them had a hand each placed against the tabletop, their fingers almost touching, their hands lying right next to each other.  
   
But then the server led Yuu and Kouyou to the table, and it quickly silenced their discussion, their attention quickly being diverted to the couple standing before them. Akira looked disappointed at the interruption, silently hoping he could have had more time with Takanori alone.  
   
“Hey!” Takanori waved up to his raven-haired friend, a friendly smile spreading across his face. “Yuu, you’re here! And…”  
   
His eyes traveled interestedly to the taller blond standing next to Yuu. “Kouyou…. Right?”  _Wow_.  
   
Takanori didn’t have to say it aloud, but Yuu could already see it in his eyes. The man was  _definitely_  approving of Yuu’s taste in men.  
   
“You did good,” Takanori whispered over to Yuu, giving him a thumbs-up sign. Kouyou obviously heard the exchange and was smiling amusedly to himself, but feigned ignorance so as not to embarrass Yuu further. Yuu had suffered enough for the day with the lingerie shopping and now  _this_ ; even the blond was starting to pity Yuu a bit.  
   
Yuu’s face flamed up at Takanori’s frank statement. “Kouyou can hear you,” the raven whispered furiously back, to which Takanori just grinned in response.  
   
Kouyou made sure to pull Yuu’s chair out for him before the raven could do so himself, and Yuu found himself awkwardly thanking Kouyou for the gentlemanly gesture and seating himself down against the velvet chair, trying to ignore Takanori’s excitement at seeing such a romantic sight.  
   
“Hey,” Kouyou started introducing himself, still standing, at the same time extending a hand out to Takanori for a handshake, a charming smile plastered against the blond’s face. “I’m Takashima Kouyou. Nice to meet you.”  
   
Yuu himself gushed silently at seeing how formal and handsome Kouyou was being, knowing this was the Kouyou he had met on their first date, the british-accented CEO that had captivated him to bits.  
   
“I’ve heard so much about you!” Takanori said, accepting Kouyou’s handshake eagerly. “And seen so many pictures, too. You look way better in real life.”  
   
“Takanori saw photos of us at the gala,” Yuu added, explaining. “Uh… he was kind of the one who googled you.”  
   
“I see,” Kouyou nodded, pulling his hand back and finally taking a seat himself after he’d finished his introduction. “I’m happy you’ve taken an interest in me, Takanori.”  
   
“Ahem,” Akira cut in, glancing warily over to his best friend cum boss. “I would say Takanori has taken a  _bigger_ interest in me.”  
   
Takanori laughed, his eyes fluttering sweetly back to Akira. “That’s a very bold statement to say, mister Suzuki.”  
   
_Oh_ , god. Were they flirting? They  _so_ were. Yuu laughed softly to himself, watching Takanori smile teasingly up to Akira, whose gaze was so clearly devoted to Takanori’s face.  
   
_I guess their relationship is advancing as quick as my one did with Kouyou._  
   
“Want to take a look at the menu?” Kouyou abruptly asked Yuu, handing the raven a copy of the menu, distracting Yuu away from the couple. Kouyou looked unbothered by the loving display of affection before them. “I heard this restaurant’s pomodori col riso is good.”  
   
Yuu made a face at his words. Kouyou always talked to him about the names of all these food as if Yuu knew any of them.  
   
“I think you should just choose for me,” Yuu sighed, eyes skimming down the menu, trying to find a single dish he had at least heard of before. “You would know what’s good, right? I always like what you pick, anyway.”  
   
“Akira likes the risotto,” Takanori offered, finally turning his attention back to them. “We’re both getting them. He says it’s good.”  
   
Kouyou cocked an eyebrow up at his words, slyly smiling over to Akira who was sitting across him. “Oh, he did, didn’t he?” Yuu was suddenly interested as to why Kouyou was acting so coy.  
   
“I don’t know why you’re staring at me like that,” Akira narrowed his eyes to the blond. “Stop being creepy. You’ll scare everyone around this table off.”  
   
“Are you guys always like this?” Takanori asked with a laugh, having never expected the two men to act so hostile to each other.  
   
“Usually Kouyou’s ten times angrier,” Akira joked, awaiting Kouyou’s oncoming glare. “Isn’t that right, Yuu?”  
   
Yuu pouted. “Kouyou’s not a very angry person,” the raven hurriedly came to Kouyou’s defense, smiling tenderly up to his blond lover. “At least not to me. He’s always so sweet and charming.”  
   
Kouyou’s eyes perked with surprise, his lips curling into a pleased smile at Yuu’s words. “See? Yuu doesn’t complain. Akira, stop trying to influence Takanori badly about me.”  
   
“Oh, no, if Yuu says you’re a good person, I definitely believe him,” Takanori rushed to say. “Yuu calls you his prince charming.”  
   
Kouyou’s smile got wider. “Did he?”  
   
“Takanori, you didn’t have to say that,” Yuu looked away, embarrassed. “Anyway, Kouyou, you already know that, since I’ve called you that before. So stop acting like it’s news to you!”  
   
“It’s different if you’re telling your friends about it, too,” Kouyou’s eyes gleamed happily, his lips leaning over to plant a soft kiss against the raven’s hair. “Such a shy little princess. Of course hearing these kind of things make me happy.” Yuu’s cheeks turned pink at the knowledge that Kouyou was being so intimate with him in front of their friends.  
   
Takanori had to try his best to contain his squeals.  
   
“Akiraaa, I want a kiss on my hair too,” Takanori mewled cutely, turning his attention back to his boyfriend. “Do it!”  
   
Akira didn’t even hesitate. “Okay,” he said, then leaned over to give a small peck to Takanori against his hair. Takanori relished in the kiss, grinning once it was done. Akira didn’t instantly pull away from Takanori’s hair, however. “Oh, you smell good.”  
   
“It’s a new shampoo I’m trying. Do you like it?” Takanori asked cheerfully.  
   
“I  _love_  it,” Akira answered, smirking boyishly to the younger man.  
   
“If I use it more often, will you kiss me on the hair more?” Takanori questioned, innocently blinking up to him.  
   
“Mmhmm,” Akira chuckled, nodding along to Takanori’s request.  
   
Yuu’s jaw almost fell at the sight of how whipped Akira was for Takanori. Takanori’s little game of playing hard-to-get was actually working?! Yuu turned to Kouyou with his jaw open, and realized his lover was staring back to him with a bemused smile as well, holding the same thoughts.  
   
“Don’t say anything,” Kouyou hushed, reaching his hand over to Yuu’s head, gently running his fingers down Yuu’s hair. “You know I’m the same when it comes to you.”  
   
Yuu laughed at the knowledge. Kouyou was right. The blond was whipped himself, constantly pampering Yuu to his every whim, and rushing to his side whenever Yuu so much as mentioned he was upset. Kouyou had even gotten Yuu a credit card for the raven to use whenever he so wished. Compared to Akira, who was still in the beginning stages of spoiling his lover, Kouyou was way worse.  
   
Though Yuu could see Akira spiraling down quickly at this rate, as well…  
   
These men were beyond  _incomprehensible_. They had the world at the tip of their fingers, but at the end of the day, it was their lovers that controlled their hearts. Yuu sighed comfortingly at the thought.  
   
“Hey, help me order food already,” Yuu whined to Kouyou, playing up his adorable side, not wanting to lose out to Takanori when it came to being pampered by his lover. “I’m so hungry. Do you want me to die from hunger?”  
   
Kouyou frowned. “Of course not. I’ll order food for you immediately.” And then he was raising his hand up, impatiently calling for the server to head over.  
   
Yuu had to stifle his giggle at the sight of Kouyou looking so concerned over his welfare.  
   
Yuu then caught Takanori eyeing him approvingly, winking at him to acknowledge that he knew  _precisely_ what the raven was doing. Yuu just laughed.  
   
~  
   
“Yuu, I forgot to tell you,” Takanori suddenly said, in the midst of eating, bringing everyone’s attention to him quickly. “Akira bought me a bouquet of lilies today. He’s so thoughtful.”  
   
Yuu almost choked on his food, laughter almost escaping him as he attempted to swallow his food down. Kouyou worriedly brought a hand over to stroke at Yuu’s back soothingly, while his other hand reached swiftly for a napkin to pass to Yuu.  
   
Yuu wiped at his mouth delicately, thanking Kouyou sweetly for the gesture, though he was secretly holding his laughter in so much his cheeks were on the verge of exploding.  
   
“Akira’s so thoughtful,” Yuu echoed, looking warmly up to Takanori’s date. “I hadn’t known of him being such a romantic until you began telling me all about it.”  
   
Akira was looking so pleased with himself, having earned both Yuu and Takanori’s approval, that it was making Kouyou slightly jealous. Hearing Yuu’s words, Kouyou remembered he hadn’t been getting Yuu much flowers of late, and he wondered if this was Yuu’s way of hinting he wanted them again.  
   
(Of course, that wasn’t Yuu’s intention at all. But Kouyou was being overly sensitive as usual.)  
   
“I really appreciate the lilies, though,” Takanori laughed, looking up to Akira, a genuine smile spreading across his face. Yuu could tell Takanori was speaking honestly from the heart this time, none of that cute shtick he was using awhile ago. “It’s been such a long time since I felt so cared for like this. At first I only thought you were good-looking, but I didn’t know you were such a good person from within, too.”  
   
Akira looked as if he was about to melt at Takanori’s words, but the man was too prideful to let it show. Akira merely smiled and waved it off.  
   
“I’d do anything for someone with the likes of you,” Akira handsomely remarked, eyes glinting towards Takanori, and Yuu inadvertently smiled at the sight.  
   
The raven felt relieved Akira and Takanori had found each other like this, since he was sure the both of them would be in good hands with one another. And looking at Takanori gaze up to Akira with such adoring eyes, Yuu was sure his friend would drop his stubborn act sooner or later and surrender to Akira’s advances. Akira was way too good of a catch to pass up – and Takanori clearly knew that, too.  
   
The raven had been too immersed in his thoughts, a stupefied smile on his face, that he hadn’t noticed Kouyou’s arm making its way around his waist, securing Yuu possessively in Kouyou’s grasp.  
   
“Hm?” Yuu asked, confused, turning his head to face his lover. Kouyou looked disheartened and miserable, and that was when Yuu realized he had unconsciously ignored Kouyou this whole time.  
   
“Stop fawning over other people’s lovers,” Kouyou sulked, a dejected look in his eye. “I’m right here next to you.”  
   
Yuu laughed, then moved his fingers to pinch at Kouyou’s cheeks.  
   
“What an idiot,” Yuu teased. “You’re jealous because I’m happy for our friends?”  
   
Kouyou sighed. “Don’t put it like that. You know what I mean again, Yuu.”  
   
“Kouyou just wants your attention to be directed more towards him,” Takanori smiled, chipping in. “His eyes have been on you the whole dinner. Plus, he’s been offering you the good bits of his food, and making sure to ask the waiter to re-fill your water every fifteen minutes. He really is a prince charming.”  
   
Kouyou smiled faintly at his words. “It’s nothing, really. It’s what I always do for Yuu, anyway.”  
   
Yuu had been so used to Kouyou taking such initiative for him that he hadn’t even noticed anything out of ordinary this whole dinner.  
   
_God_ , he really was taking Kouyou for granted, wasn’t he? Even Takanori had noticed how naturally sweet and considerate Kouyou was.  
   
“Did I neglect you a bit?” Yuu asked, gazing up anxiously to the older man. He leaned up to kiss the blond softly against the cheek. “Idiot. You know when we get home, I’ll be all yours anyway.”  
   
Kouyou’s eyes gleamed at the thought. “You’re right. We also did lots of shopping earlier that could be put to good use, too.” Yuu groaned – he could almost see the pervertic thoughts forming in his head. Yuu gave a kick underneath the table to Kouyou’s leg at his words.  
   
“Shopping?” Takanori asked, a bizzare look on his face. “You guys don’t look like you went out shopping earlier.”  
   
Yuu’s heart stopped at his words.  _Fuck_.  
   
~  
   
Takanori would notice, of course. Why exactly did Yuu think he could ever fool him? He had obviously underestimated Takanori too much.  
   
“What do you mean?” Akira asked, suddenly interested, cockily raising an eyebrow to Kouyou. Kouyou’s face grew grim.  
   
“Well, Yuu came in here with smudged make-up,” Takanori pointed out, slyly smirking. “It looked like it had been melted off by sweat, or something. Either way, I’m too familiar with how after-sex make-up looks. And even though Yuu probably touched-up his make-up after...  
   
To the average person, they probably couldn’t tell the difference. But, see, I’m not average. Besides, Kouyou’s shirt and pants are wrinkled. And I’m pretty sure Kouyou’s not the type to go to a date with un-ironed clothing.”  
   
With every word Takanori said, the smugness on Akira’s face grew. Kouyou was stunned to silence, having not expected Takanori’s detective skills.  
   
“I can’t believe you figured it out so easily,” Akira laughed to his lover. “You’re so smart!”  
   
Takanori cackled. “I didn’t mention it earlier because it was so obvious. I didn’t realize you didn’t know.”  
   
“Kouyou, Kouyou…” Akira clucked his tongue, shaking his head towards his best friend. “What can I say? It’s not like I didn’t expect that. I’m just surprised Yuu can keep up with your vigour.”  
   
Yuu’s cheeks reddened. Kouyou just sighed.  
   
“Ah! Wait! I know!” Takanori’s eyes widened, after he’d pieced the bits and pieces together in his head. “Don’t tell me… You guys had sex in a mall? That’s where you did the shopping, right?”  
   
Yuu was mortified Takanori was stating it so openly. Even if he made such a realization, was there really a need to reveal it like that?!  
   
“Takanori!!! I thought you were my friend!”  
   
“Oops,” Takanori laughed. “Was I not supposed to say it out loud? But I’m right, right? Hehe.”  
   
“You should study to be an investigator,” Kouyou took it in good stride, calmly smiling. “You look like you have a real knack for picking up clues.”  
   
“Takanori’s very smart,” Akira declared proudly. “He can do whatever he puts his mind to.”  
   
“Of course I can,” Takanori agreed, sticking his nose up high. Akira couldn’t resist seeing Takanori so cocky like this, and ended up leaning over to peck a kiss against Takanori’s hair.  
   
Meanwhile, Yuu was still dying from mortification.  
   
“Today is one of the most embarrassing days in my life…” Yuu turned to his lover and buried his head sadly into Kouyou’s chest, his fingers gripping Kouyou’s shirt vexingly. The raven even let out a low moan of displeasure as he hid his face away from the couple before them. “Takashima Kouyou! I demand you to repay me for all this humiliation!”  
   
Kouyou looked down with an endearing smile to his young lover, patting at his head rather delightedly. “Yuu, if you’re trying to be angry with me, it’s not exactly working. You look too cute.”  
   
“Shut it!” Yuu hissed. He was embarrassed enough already, and in his one attempt to regain some sense of pride back, he was acting…  _too cute_?!  
   
Kouyou sighed, deciding to pacify Yuu a bit. “Fine, fine. I’ll listen to you, princess. When we get back home, I’ll definitely repay you with all my…  _might_.”  
   
But his last few words were so laced with connotation, it only elicited more laughter from Takanori and Akira. Kouyou smirked down to Yuu, knowing the raven would react even more violently to his teasing.  
   
“I’m making you sleep on the couch! Bastard!” Yuu cursed, punching Kouyou’s chest angrily.  
   
“Yuu, that’s my house…”  
   
“Do I look like I care! You’re sleeping on the couch!”  
   
“Okay, okay, I’ll sleep on the couch…”  
   
Kouyou knew he was  _not_  sleeping on the couch. As long as he had Yuu’s body pinned down underneath him, the raven would give in to him too easily once Kouyou seduced him with his fluttery kisses. Kouyou could even hear Yuu whimpering his name desperately, already…  
   
Yuu, meeting with Kouyou’s silence, had grown curious as to why the blond was no longer countering his remarks, and raised his head up.  
   
Needless to say, he wasn’t pleased at the sight.  
   
“Why do you have that sex-crazed grin on your face, Takashima Kouyou!!!!!!”  
   
~  
   
The rest of the dinner passed by in a fun blur. After making payment, the older men hastily escorted their younger lovers back down to their cars, eager to get the rest of the night started. Takanori and Yuu bade goodbye to each other, promising to set-up another double date like this again.  
   
“I really enjoyed getting to know you and Kouyou,” Takanori said, smiling to the couple before him. “You really have good taste, Yuu.”  
   
“I’m flattered you think so,” Kouyou thanked politely in return. “I apologize in advance if Akira annoys you in any way. He usually means well, but sometimes he gets on my nerves too.”  
   
“Takashima!” Akira glared daggers to him. “If you weren’t my boss, I wouldn’t be giving you so much leeway, I swear. Takanori likes me too much to get annoyed by me!”  
   
“Just ignore Kouyou,” Yuu huffed, still mad at his lover for before. Kouyou looked to him with puppy eyes. Yuu just turned away. “Anyway, Takanori, Akira, I really enjoyed tonight’s dinner. I hope you have a great night later.”  
   
Takanori giggled, gazing up curiously to his lover. “I’m still not sure what plans Akira has for us.”  
   
“It’s a surprise,” Akira snickered, smiling affectionately back to Takanori, slithering an arm down around the smaller man. Takanori leaned in and nestled his head against Akira’s shoulder. “Anyhow, we wish you a great night, too. Kouyou, I hope you enjoy the couch tonight.”  
   
Kouyou narrowed his eyes to his best friend, a threatening look in his eyes. “Suzuki Akira…”  
   
“What? Like he’s not speaking the truth,” Yuu stuck his tongue out. Kouyou sulked further.  
   
They both returned to their respective cars after that. Once Yuu and Kouyou had slipped into their seats and Yuu was about to reach for his seatbelt, the first thing Kouyou did was to lean forth in his seat and capture Yuu’s face in his two hands, his lips greedily drawing Yuu into a rough, passionate kiss.  
   
Yuu was surprised by the sudden enthusiasm, but he didn’t reject it. He kissed Kouyou back, trying his hardest to keep up with Kouyou’s hungry pace, his tongue gently entwining with Kouyou’s, his mouth letting slip soft moans from the back of his throat. Kouyou kissed Yuu until the both of them went breathless, with saliva slipping down past their mouths from the sloppy, hurried kissing – and only then was he finally satisfied.  
   
Pulling back and wiping at his lips with the ends of his sleeve, Kouyou gazed to Yuu, eyes fondfully concentrated on Yuu’s face. Yuu felt like he was under sudden scrutiny.  
   
“You worried me back there,” Kouyou started with a sorrowful sigh, his eyes downcast. “Did I really make you mad?”  
   
Oh. Yuu understood why Kouyou was suddenly kissing him now, as if needing affirmation from the raven that Yuu wasn’t completely crossed with him.  
   
Of course, Yuu never meant any of it. He had only been too embarrassed back there, realizing Takanori and Akira had found out details about their sex life, and needed to take some of that embarrassment out on Kouyou.  
   
But since this was an opportunity to let Kouyou learn his lesson for teasing Yuu so much in public, Yuu decided he wouldn’t let Kouyou off the hook so easily this time.  
   
“You did,” Yuu frowned, unwilling to  _even_ look Kouyou in the eye. “I’m so mad about that. I don’t want you to ever–”  
   
The raven-haired was startled when he felt one of his hands carefully being lifted up to Kouyou’s lips, the blond kissing Yuu gently against his skin once again.  
   
“I apologize,” Kouyou sincerely said, eyes shimmering up to Yuu in a regretful manner. “Please don’t get mad at me. You know I can’t handle it. I won’t say such things again if it makes you mad.”  
   
A small smile uncontrollably blossomed upon Yuu’s face – Kouyou always knew the right things to say. And as Kouyou kissed Yuu’s hand a second time, this time even sweeter than before, Yuu found his heart gradually giving in.  
   
_What an idiot…_  
   
“Will you forgive me?” Kouyou asked, his voice stricken.  
   
Looking at that handsome face of his, Yuu had no heart to say no.  
   
“Fine. You don’t have to sleep on the couch,” Yuu finally said.  
   
Kouyou’s anxious face dissolved into a relieved smile. “Well… I wasn’t going to, anyway.”  
   
“Hey! I just forgave you!” Yuu countered, annoyed. “Don’t make me take it back!”  
   
Kouyou grinned devilishly. “I knew you wouldn’t stay mad at me like this, babydoll. My princess isn’t so heartless.”  
   
“Okay, I change my mind. You sleep on the couch tonight.”  
   
“But babydoll…”

~ 

Yuu ended up giving in to Kouyou once they returned to the apartment, anyway.  
   
Crumbling into nothing but a writhing body, along with plentiful whimpers and moans of Kouyou’s name; Yuu could barely remember anything else once he was pinned underneath Kouyou’s sheer strength, the older man heavily thrusting into him until the raven fully succumbed to the pleasure only Kouyou could bring to him.  
   
“Nn, Kouyou…” Yuu moaned, his heavily-lidded eyes intoxicated in lust. Kouyou was so good in bed it was  _insane_.  
   
“Next time, don’t fawn over other men so much,” Kouyou breathed, planting soft kisses against the nape of Yuu’s neck, still urgently thrusting into the smaller raven. “It makes me jealous.”  
   
“Un… nn… Unreasonableee… uunn…” Yuu managed to mewl out, his words barely audible to make out. Kouyou was going _so_ fast it was driving him mad.  
   
“I get jealous very easily,” Kouyou whispered, sinking his teeth deep into the side of Yuu’s neck, drawing a small cry from his younger lover.  
   
_Oh_ , Yuu was going to be so sore the next morning…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, what happy times they have...
> 
> Hehehe, tell me your thoughts on this double-date. I wonder what next will be in store for our lovely couples *A*


	28. Chapter 28

Yuu stirred up from his sleep the next morning – or afternoon, Yuu wasn’t sure anymore – to Kouyou lightly snoring, still deep in slumber, his arms wrapped loosely around the raven’s waist. The curtains by the balcony were still drawn, allowing the bare minimum of sunlight in, enclosing the room in darkness. Yuu couldn’t tell what time it was, and he was too lazy to strain his head up to glance to the clock, but it felt like he had slept forever. And seeing that Kouyou was still fast asleep, clearly exhausted from last night, when Kouyou was usually the one to wake up before Yuu; the raven was sure last night had been more vigorous and  _extensive_ than the others.  
   
It was so rare that Yuu woke up to Kouyou’s sleeping face, and Yuu wanted to take every moment to savour it. Kouyou always looked so fragile when he was sleeping that it was cute; considering how he was such a powerful and dominant figure in real life. Yuu took special care not to move in his position, fearful of waking his lover up, and smiled simply to himself at the sight of Kouyou resting like this.  
   
The blond’s chest rose and fell with every staggered breath he took, and his lips were slightly parted. Kouyou hadn’t bothered to go to bed with a shirt on as usual, always preferring to clothe Yuu’s slim frame in his shirts instead, something that Yuu noticed only now. The raven made a face at the thought that this could be another kink of Kouyou’s that Kouyou hadn’t talked to him about, but Yuu decided to brush it off as a cute gesture anyway. Besides, he loved snuggling up in Kouyou’s clothes. It smelled like him and his distinct cologne and it made Yuu feel close and safe, surrounded by the blond like this.  
   
As Kouyou turned a little in his sleep, a couple of blond hair strands fell down against Kouyou’s face, shielding his eyes. Yuu leaned his fingers over, gently tucking them back behind Kouyou’s ear.  
   
Kouyou looked so beautiful like this, with his eyes closed, flaunting his long dark lashes. And his jaw, so masculine, and his lips, taking soft breaths in an adorable pout…  
   
Yuu grinned hard to himself, heart galloping quickly at the knowledge that Kouyou was all his. How many people out there would kill to be in this position Yuu was in right now? To have landed himself such a handsome-looking CEO, who loved Yuu with all his life… Yuu was sure Kouyou must have had plenty of admirers, and many people who vied for his attention, and that mere thought made Yuu frown in jealousy. He would never share Kouyou with anyone else. And he was positive Kouyou held the same sentiment, too.  
   
Yuu heard light rustling and turned his attention back to Kouyou, who was starting to slowly awaken from his sleep. Yuu had to hold back a laugh at how lost and confused Kouyou looked as his eyes flitted open, his blond hair in a mess. It was so nice to see Kouyou in his raw moments, capturing him in such vulnerability, proving he was  _really_ a human being, despite Yuu’s suspicion Kouyou was a character that had walked right out of a romance novel sometimes.  
   
“Morning,” Yuu murmured cutely, smiling up to the taller man. Kouyou’s face immediately fell back into his usual happy grin, the one that he made whenever he was with the raven.  
   
“Morning, princess,” Kouyou whispered back, albeit a little sleepily. His eyes were still straining to open as he yawned to himself, clearly reluctant to leave bed yet. “You’re up early.”  
   
“You’re up  _late_ ,” Yuu pointed out cheekily. Kouyou smiled faintly to him, shaking his head.  
   
“I’m failing in my prince duties,” Kouyou teased, his hands reaching for the blanket currently over them that only covered up to their waist. He pulled it further up to their shoulders, almost engulfing Yuu’s small frame under the entire blanket. “I think I should compensate my princess with some early morning dessert…”  
   
“Hey!” Yuu pouted, pushing the blanket off him. “I don’t even know how many rounds we went for last night. I can’t believe you’re still horny!”  
   
Kouyou gave a dry laugh. “I’m always in the mood when I look at you,” he said, lecherous eyes roaming down Yuu’s figure. “If I don’t worship this body, who will?”  
   
Yuu wanted to shrivel up right then underneath Kouyou’s lewd gaze. It was so maddening how Kouyou always said these things so frivolously and casually like it didn’t matter to him at all – the blond had  _no_  shame!  
   
But Yuu couldn’t deny the fact that he  _did_ like Kouyou adoring him like this…  
   
“Ah, it’s nearing one in the afternoon,” Kouyou noted, his eyes on the clock placed behind Yuu. “It’s been awhile since I slept in like this.”  
   
No wonder it felt like Yuu had been sleeping forever. “Do you remember what time we went to bed?”  
   
Kouyou pondered over that question for a bit. “Not really,” the blond shrugged. “I was too busy lavishing the body in front of me to care.”  
   
Yuu smiled bashfully to himself. “You’re getting more daring,” the raven sulked, turning his face away.  
   
“Too daring to what?” Kouyou grinned, rough fingers reaching up to grip gently at Yuu’s jaw, turning the raven to face him. “I love it when you’re shy with me.”  
   
Yuu scrunched his blushing face up into – what he hoped was – a glare. “You’re getting so spoilt ever since the gala!”  
   
Ever since Yuu had confessed his love for the blond, Yuu realized Kouyou had grown more confident when it came to matters regarding Yuu. Although Kouyou was still the gentle, patient lover Yuu had known him to be, Kouyou didn’t hold back in teasing Yuu, or ravaging him to pieces whenever he got the chance to. Although it was a good sign – Kouyou growing more comfortable around Yuu like this – but Yuu felt indignant at the thought that Kouyou was taking advantage of Yuu so readily now that the raven decided to open his heart up to him.  
   
As much as Yuu retaliated against Kouyou’s advances, though, Yuu still felt glad knowing he could make Kouyou happy like this. Kouyou deserved everything in the world, for how much he had given to Yuu.  
   
“I know you’re just acting like you hate all this attention from me,” Kouyou smirked, bending over to kiss Yuu softly against the head. “My little flower can’t refuse me like this. Or maybe I need to find Christine again to hear how much you love me…”  
   
Yuu frowned instantly at that mention, jealousy beginning to seep into his heart. “You’re not allowed to speak of Christine in front of me!”  
   
Kouyou had to hold back his laughter at how precious Yuu looked like this; his eyebrows raised in an angry scowl and his chubby cheeks so puffed up.  
   
“Sweetheart, you know Christine is nothing to me anymore,” Kouyou coaxed, his arms falling down to Yuu’s waist, tightening around Yuu. “You know my heart better than anyone about this. So don’t look so upset, okay babydoll?”  
   
Yuu just huffed childishly and lay his head against Kouyou’s chest. “Then stop talking about her. I don’t like the way her name sounds on your lips!”  
   
Kouyou laughed softly to himself. Yuu looked so cute even when he was being petty that Kouyou couldn’t bring himself to get mad at him. “Alright, princess. At least you now understand me when I talk about how upset I get when I think of you with other men.”  
   
Yuu nuzzled his head a little against Kouyou’s neck. “You don’t have to think of me with other men, silly. You might just be the first time I’ve ever loved someone like this.”  
   
Yuu’s words – although said so nonchalantly – carried such weight and intensity that it surprised Kouyou, and even Yuu himself.  
   
Yuu sighed at the relevation that he was revealing more of himself to the blond again. He  _really_ was doing things he hadn’t ever thought he would before; opening himself up, whole-heartedly, and allowing the blond to monopolize his very heart. And it was true, now that Yuu thought about it. It really was true about Yuu not having loved anyone like he did for Kouyou before. He was young, and the few serious relationships he had previously never mattered much to him. But then he met Kouyou, this tall, charming, perfect CEO, and he’d successfully sent Yuu’s heart in a downward spiral in the few weeks Yuu had known him.  
   
It was almost like it was meant to be. And Yuu would like to think so, because he couldn’t imagine a life without Kouyou around anymore. Even just the thought of that made his heart wrench.  
   
“Am I really the first?” Kouyou asked, his tone hopeful, his face in sweet disbelief. Yuu didn’t see any reason to lie, and he nodded hesitantly, bright eyes turning to look up to Kouyou.  
   
“I’ve just never felt for anyone like this before,” Yuu sighed quietly, watching as Kouyou’s face beamed with every word he said. “And you always take care of me. I’ve never felt so safe and protected in anyone else’s arms before.”  
   
Kouyou looked so happy at Yuu’s earnestly said words that the raven couldn’t bring himself to regret them one bit.  
   
“Of course I’ll take care of you,” Kouyou murmured, bestowing kisses all the way down Yuu’s hair. “I’ll take care of you as long as you allow me to. Even if you had never fallen in love with me, even if you were adamant on this remaining a monetary arrangement, a sugar relationship… I would pay all the money in the world to have you safe in my arms. I wouldn’t ever let any other man have you.”  
   
Yuu smiled shyly to himself. “You’re saying creepy things again.” It wasn’t creepy at all to Yuu, though, no. Yuu delighted in hearing Kouyou’s words, knowing that the older man would have done anything in his power to keep Yuu by his side. Because Yuu needed that reassurance, that nothing else was more important to Kouyou than the raven’s presence himself.  
   
“Is it really creepy if they’re my true thoughts?” Kouyou asked, sighing, embracing Yuu closely to him. “Yuu, I’m just so happy you’re telling me all of this. That you love me, and that you’ve never done so for anyone else before. I may have had previous relationships too, but I’m not sure if I’ve fallen so hopelessly in love like this. I wake up every morning thinking of you. And I really hope you do, too.”  
   
Yuu raised his head up to sneak a small kiss against Kouyou’s jaw. “Of course I do. I think of you all the time when I’m not with you.”  
   
Kouyou broke into a cheerful laugh, relieved at Yuu’s words.  
   
Yuu was certain this was the perfect time to break the news to Kouyou about his decision to move in.  
   
“But you don’t have to think of me anymore,” Yuu’s heart hammered wildly in his chest as he spoke. “Not when you’ll be waking up to me by your side every morning.”  
   
Kouyou went so silent at his words that Yuu thought he hadn’t understood what Yuu had implied. After a while, it was clear that Kouyou had gotten it, but he was second-guessing himself, unsure if Yuu was so outrightly agreeing to living together with him like this.  
   
“Are you…?” Kouyou’s face looked so shocked that Yuu giggled uncontrollably before him.  
   
“I am,” Yuu hurriedly answered, not even waiting for Kouyou to finish his question.  
   
And then Kouyou’s eyes were glimmering again, his lips widening into an incredulous smile. “Really?!” He was smiling so crazedly to the raven that it made Yuu laugh.  
   
“Don’t make me change my mind,” Yuu taunted, folding his arms.  
   
“No!” Kouyou frowned. “You’re not allowed to change your mind! You’ve already agreed.”  
   
Yuu squinted his eyes to him playfully. “If you’re already acting so assertive even before I’ve moved in, I might think twice about my decision to do so…”  
   
“Not allowed,” Kouyou repeated, then lowered his head to bring Yuu’s lips urgently into a soft kiss.  
   
“You’re not allowed to change your mind about this,” he whispered against Yuu’s mouth, biting erotically against the raven’s lower lip. “You’ve already made me so happy, you can’t take it back anymore.”  
   
Yuu continued teasing the older man, seeing as how Kouyou was attempting to exert his authority over him. “But  _Daddy_ …”  
   
“Daddy doesn’t like indecisive princesses,” Kouyou whispered, kissing Yuu as sweetly as possible. “So don’t make Daddy mad. Alright?”  
   
Yuu nodded his head thoughtfully, fluttering his lashes as innocently as he could up to the blond. He was absolutely sure he would be squirming underneath Kouyou in no less than five minutes, once Kouyou had taken one look at his demeanour like this. He knew all of Kouyou’s weak points, and one of them definitely included acting like a spoilt princess to make Kouyou lose control.  
   
True enough, Kouyou was sucking in a deep breath as he gazed upon Yuu’s countenance. Kouyou was  _always_ falling for it. Yuu had to hold in his giggles as he deliberately pecked a kiss cutely up against Kouyou’s cheek.  
   
Whatever will and restrain Kouyou had left was completely slipping away by now, Yuu could tell, by that vacant look in Kouyou’s eyes.  
   
“ _Daddy_ ,” Yuu called once more. Kouyou’s self-restrain always crumbled whenever Yuu used that term to affectionately call after him, since Yuu used it more often than not when they were in bed together.  
   
“What do you need, princess?” Kouyou asked immediately, his voice almost in a growl, much huskier than before.  
   
Yuu tipped his head to the side. “Nothing. Just wondering how you’ll handle me once you get to see me everyday. I think I need to lay a few ground rules first to protect my well-being.”  
   
Kouyou grinned. “You know I wouldn’t pay attention to any of those rules, babydoll…” His hands were roaming down Yuu’s waist as he spoke, slowly to the raven’s ass, feeling up the younger man’s naked bum. Seeing as how Kouyou had clothed Yuu  _only_ in his shirt last night, the raven wasn’t wearing underneath, and it was easy for his hands to slip under Yuu’s shirt and cup his hands against Yuu’s round butt.  
   
Yuu wiggled his ass a little in Kouyou’s grasp, teasing the blond further.  
   
“I seriously can’t believe your sex drive sometimes,” Yuu whined, though he was obviously riling Kouyou even more with his sensual body movements. “You’re such a brute.”  
   
Kouyou laughed, then slyly uttered: “You underestimate the appetite I have, my sweet little princess…”  
   
Yuu thought they had woken up late enough, but they proceeded to spend the whole of their Sunday afternoon rolling around in bed, entangling their bodies together, their mouths never leaving each other’s skin.  
   
And in the midst of it all, as Kouyou grasped Yuu’s hair and devoured him into a harsh kiss, Yuu thought to himself that he didn’t mind spending the rest of his life with Kouyou, like this, at all.  
   
~  
   
After  _many_ intense hours of heated pleasure, Yuu only managed to convince Kouyou they had to get out of bed because the raven had grown too hungry to go for any more rounds with the blond. Kouyou, of course, listened attentively to Yuu’s request, since he wasn’t about to subject Yuu to hunger just because of his selfish desires. They washed each other in the shower soon after, though that again took a while since Yuu had to constantly slap Kouyou’s hand away from his ass to prevent the blond from trying anything with him.  
   
Once they were done and all dressed up, Kouyou informed Yuu he would be taking him out for dinner at a restaurant, seeing as how neither of them could be energized enough to cook, anyway. Yuu readily agreed, and quickly packed up his dirty clothes so Kouyou could easily drop him off back at his place after dinner.  
   
On their way to the restaurant, they also began discussing the arrangements for Yuu’s move-in to Kouyou’s apartment.  
   
“I’ll try to finish packing my stuff tomorrow after class, so I can move in on Tuesday,” Yuu told of his plan to Kouyou, once they were seated in the car. “I don’t have much, so it shouldn’t take long.”  
   
“I’ll clear my schedule on Tuesday, then,” Kouyou said, without a second thought. “I’ll finish work a couple of hours early so I can help you with the move.”  
   
“It’s fine! I can just take a cab,” Yuu protested, adamant on not taking any more work hours away from Kouyou’s schedule. “I don’t want you throwing your work aside for me again.”  
   
Kouyou was firm on his decision. “I’ll drive you. I’m not about to let my lover move in without any help from me.”  
   
Yuu sighed at how stubborn Kouyou was acting. Sometimes it was endearing how caring and romantic Kouyou was, but at the same time, he liked to make a lot of his decisions on his own, especially when it came to things that he thought would benefit Yuu. Kouyou always refused to back down from his decisions without a good reason, even if Yuu pleaded him to do so. Yuu understood that Kouyou always had his best interests in mind, but the raven didn’t always like to be the princess Kouyou always treated him to be. It was nice to have a lover that was so confident, so strong-willed, but at the same time, it sucked knowing that Kouyou had the final say in some things.  
   
And Yuu just hated imposing on people so much, especially the people he loved.  
   
“Is there really nothing I can do to make you change your mind?” Yuu asked, hoping if he sounded upset enough, the blond would give in to him. Kouyou rarely refused him, or used his authoritative and demanding tone with Yuu, and Yuu was counting on that part of Kouyou to agree with Yuu’s request.  
   
“No.” Kouyou didn’t look like he wanted to discuss further on the topic, surprising Yuu, and it left the younger man feeling rather resentful. He’d thought Kouyou would always want to appease his wishes. The raven looked out the window and folded his arms, deciding to keep silent the rest of the car journey.  
   
Kouyou could guess that he’d struck a nerve in his lover, for he was glancing over to him with a deep-etched frown.  
   
“You’re mad,” Kouyou said.  
   
Yuu didn’t answer.  
   
Kouyou released a low sigh. “Yuu…”  
   
Yuu just had to remain silent for a little longer, just a  _whee_ bit longer…  
   
…And he was certain Kouyou wouldn’t be able to withstand the cold treatment from the raven, and would concede defeat. Yuu just knew Kouyou couldn’t stand being ignored by Yuu like this.  
   
“I don’t understand why you won’t let me help you,” Kouyou lamented, his eyes looking concernedly over to Yuu. “If this is about my work again, you know I don’t mind.”  
   
Yuu almost parted his lips to speak, trying to defend his stance, but decided against it. He was almost there, Yuu could feel it. Kouyou was going to give in to him any moment now.  
   
“I know what game you’re playing at, Yuu,” Kouyou’s face was sullen. “But I’m going to fall for it anyway. You know I can’t bear the thought of you upset with me.”  
   
And there it was.  
   
“Fine, I won’t clear my schedule,” Kouyou finally said. Yuu’s face brightened up. “But if it happens that I finish my work earlier on that day, and I have no meetings scheduled, I’m rushing over to help you.”  
   
Yuu glowered at Kouyou, hearing his added sentence. “Then how am I to know if you’re lying or not?”  
   
Kouyou sighed. “Yuu, when have I ever lied to you?”  
   
Yuu was satisfied enough with his answer. “If you lie to me, karma will bite you back in the ass. So don’t even try it!”  
   
Kouyou smiled, seeing Yuu’s mood perk up so quickly already.  
   
“I won’t lie to you, Yuu. You know I would never do that to you.”  
   
~  
   
Kouyou took him to a posh French restaurant this time, located only a short distance away from his apartment. Yuu realized the blond was being thoughtful again, for Kouyou made sure not to travel too far since Yuu had been complaining about his hunger. That didn’t mean Kouyou was settling on any casual dining restaurant, however. Kouyou still made sure he was bringing Yuu to a reputable, fine dining restaurant, one that served enough meal courses to ensure Yuu would be too full to  _even_  remember his hunger later.  
   
Once they had been led to their table and were seated down comfortably, Kouyou hastened to place orders for the both of them, mindful of the fact that Yuu was starving.  
   
“I would appreciate it if you hurried with our orders,” Kouyou added to the waiter, his tone rather impatient. As he spoke, he slipped a fifty-dollar bill into the waiter’s hand, a gesture that was done so smoothly no one else would have been able to notice it unless they were observing Kouyou closely like Yuu was.  
   
“I would  _really_ appreciate it,” Kouyou emphasized, his eyes unwavering as he looked up to the waiter.  
   
The waiter nodded his head frantically, pocketing the fifty-dollar bill into his pants. “Understood.”  
   
Other than being stunned by the scene before him – didn’t that only happen in movies?! Apparently not, if you were in the world of the rich – Yuu was starting to feel bad that he had whined so much about feeling hungry to the blond, in a bid to convince Kouyou they had to get out of bed.  
   
Yuu was  _of course_ hungry from a whole day of not eating, but Kouyou was beginning to make such a big deal out of it that Yuu wondered if he hadn’t needed to emphasize on it so much, by saying things like how he was going to faint or die any time soon if Kouyou didn’t allow him out of the bed to get some food to eat.  
   
Kouyou really was hopeless when it came to pleasing Yuu. Perhaps this was just how all powerful men were; they could provide anything and everything in the world for their lover, and they wanted to make full use of their privilege to do just that. They couldn’t even contemplate not being able to spoil their lover. It probably hurt their manly pride if they weren’t able to do so.  
   
While they were waiting for their food, Kouyou swiftly started up conversation with his lover again.  
   
“So, I’m guessing you’ve talked to Yutaka about it? About moving in with me.”  
   
“Ah? Yeah…” Yuu was disheartened at the reminder of the situation with his brunet best friend.  
   
“He was supportive, and he said he understood why you would ask me to do so. But he also said he would welcome me back anytime if I wanted to go back. He said he wasn’t in any rush to find another roommate.”  
   
Kouyou didn’t look too pleased with that idea – Yutaka seemingly waiting for any opportunity for Yuu to leave Kouyou and then return to his apartment – but Kouyou held back his tongue, knowing better than to voice out his thoughts. “Hmm… I see. Well, I’m just glad the both of you have worked it out. It’ll be better this way, right? Things can only get better from now on.”  
   
“Mm-hmm,” Yuu nodded his head happily to Kouyou. “I can’t wait, already. Although it feels bittersweet to not be living with my best friend anymore, but it’s not so bad when I remember I’ll be living with my hot and rich CEO boyfriend from now on.”  
   
Kouyou chuckled, his heart warming up at Yuu’s words of affection. “You’re so cute. I can’t believe I’ll get to see you everyday soon. Though… this also means that I’ll be extra reluctant to leave for work every morning.”  
   
Yuu’s face paled at the memory of sending Kouyou off to work at his apartment’s front door. “You’re horrible! You’ll never leave for work. Also, I hate waking up early in the morning. So don’t even think about having me as a housewife to send you off at 8am everyday!” The raven stuck out his tongue.  
   
Kouyou frowned. “Well, if my princess doesn’t wish to do so, it’s not like I can force you.” The blond sighed, looking longingly far-off into the distance. “I just thought it would be nice if I could have an energy-booster every morning, having my lover send me off to work with good luck kisses…”  
   
Yuu folded his arms in a huff. Kouyou was at it again!  
   
“Stop guilting me,” Yuu pouted. “Fine, I was only joking. Of course I’ll send you off to work!” The raven made sure to add quickly, “As long as I haven’t been tired out the night before because of your insatiable appetite. I fear for the state of my ass in the upcoming days ahead…”  
   
Kouyou laughed at how serious Yuu sounded. Was that an actual problem Yuu was worried about?  
   
“I think we need to reach a compromise,” Kouyou finally decided. “Let’s have sex five days a week.”  
   
Yuu gaped at him in astonishment. Five?! “No! Three!”  
   
“Okay, there is no compromise,” Kouyou concluded, resisting his smile. “So, as I was saying–”  
   
“It’s not fair! Why is your word final?” Yuu objected, cutting Kouyou short. “We’re only having sex two days a week now, and I don’t even know if my ass can bear it…”  
   
“That’s because I don’t see you five days a week, so all the pent-up sexual urges I have are brought forth when I see you during the weekends,” Kouyou pointed out. “If I see you everyday, it’ll be more tame, I swear.”  
   
Yuu narrowed his eyes. “I don’t believe you.”  
   
Kouyou’s lips curved up into a grin. “Actually, I’m not sure I believe myself very much either.”  
   
Yuu thought Kouyou to be lucky for it was at this moment that their food arrived, and the raven had felt too hungry to bother continuing their argument any further.


	29. Chapter 29

It had been midway through their dinner (and mindless bickering) when a waiter stopped by their table with a bottle of wine, presenting it to the raven. Yuu was surprised, considering he hadn’t heard Kouyou order for any wine earlier, but as his eyes flickered over to meet Kouyou’s eyes with a questioning look, Kouyou appeared equally confused by the sight of wine as well.  
   
“The 1998 Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame for you,” the waiter introduced, a pleasant smile on his face. “Would you like to have a glass now?”  
   
Yuu was too bewildered to speak. “Um…”  
   
“We didn’t order for any wine,” Kouyou said, frowning. “You must have gotten the wrong table.”  
   
The waiter’s smile was unfazed. “It is your table, correct. The mister in the back gifted this table a bottle of wine, specifically for the raven-haired mister.”  
   
Yuu tensed up, realizing the waiter was referring to him. What?  _What?_ Who the hell was the mister in the back? Why were random people gifting him wine?  _Oh_ , this was definitely going to infuriate Kouyou. Kouyou was too possessive over him to be able to stand the idea of anyone else gifting Yuu expensive items right in front of Kouyou’s face. Plus, who in the right mind would flirt with Yuu when he was so evidently having dinner with his lover?  
   
Yuu glanced to Kouyou with bated breath, watching as Kouyou’s perfectly calm face from before morphed angrily into an expression so enraged it frightened Yuu.  
   
“Who gifted Yuu the bottle of wine?” Kouyou hissed, clearly provoked by the insulting gesture.  
   
Having a man treat Yuu to expensive wine right in front of him meant that the man hadn’t even taken Kouyou into consideration; it meant that he hadn’t even thought Kouyou to be a threat; it meant that he hadn’t even thought Kouyou to be worthy of being Yuu’s partner.  
   
Yuu could see all these thoughts running wild in Kouyou’s head, and Yuu knew any hopes of having a peaceful dinner would be dashed after that.  
   
“The mister behind, seated in the corner,” The waiter answered, directing Kouyou’s attention to the aforementioned man.  
   
Yuu turned his head to look as well, curious as to the person who would gift him such a thing, but as soon as Yuu’s eyes fell upon the man – who was presently raising a glass of wine up with a grin as he caught Yuu’s gaze – the raven found himself going numb with shock.  
   
~  
   
His name was Andou Daisuke, but he preferred to go by Die.  
   
He wasn’t too old, unlike his other sugar daddies. Recently divorced and in his early forties, Die was one of the better ones that Yuu had an arrangement with, and he was someone that had been generous with his money, constantly splurging on Yuu whenever he got the chance. He had helped Yuu pay off at least half of his student loan, and Yuu had been certain if he hadn’t met Kouyou, Die would have been the one to pay off the other half for Yuu, too.  
   
Yuu also wasn’t one to have frequent sex with every of his sugar daddies, unlike some sugar babies out there, but for Die he made an exception. Yuu had spent many nights with him, in exchange for Die’s generosity, and each time Yuu was nicely rewarded.  
   
Yuu never held any feelings for Die romantically – only ones of gratitude – but Yuu had begun to suspect Die was beginning to harbor feelings for him of late, which also explained why Die had gotten so worked up when Yuu stopped replying to his messages.  
   
Die was also the attorney.  
   
Die had slipped in a vague threat about Kouyou’s career having to be destroyed once everyone found out about Yuu’s job as a sugar baby, but Yuu wasn’t sure if Die ever planned to act on it. Yuu wasn’t  _even_  sure if he was going to see Die ever again. Yuu had entirely forgotten about the man.  
   
Who would have thought Yuu would be seeing him right here with Kouyou in tow?  
   
Yuu suddenly felt so helpless he wasn’t sure what to do. This was  _not_  going to end well. No, this wouldn’t, at all. Kouyou was possessive enough as he was, and meeting another of Yuu’s sugar daddy wouldn’t help the situation at all. If Kouyou found out all the details about Yuu and Die… Yuu couldn’t even imagine how upset Kouyou would get.  
   
Looking to Kouyou now, whose hands were clenched in fists and his face currently boiling with rage, Yuu tried to find a way to pacify the blond and convince the blond to leave the restaurant as soon as possible. He’d never thought he would meet Die so quickly this way. It  _did_ cross his mind he might cross paths with Die one day, but Yuu always thought that would happen again once Yuu and Kouyou had spent many happy years together as a couple, and had a relationship secure enough that trivial people like Die didn’t even matter anymore.  
   
They could meet Die – sometime in the future, someday when Yuu had spilled out everything about his past to Kouyou – just not now. Not today. Not when Yuu and Kouyou had made plans to live together, and were taking a step further in their relationship. Not when things were already going so well. Not when Yuu was already beginning to imagine a future with Kouyou. Not when Kouyou looked so happy.  
   
Not when Yuu had fallen so far in love for the very first time like this.  
   
“Let’s just ignore him and go,” Yuu whispered, hoping desperately that this wouldn’t escalate into a confrontation. Kouyou could  _not_ meet Die under any circumstance. “Kouyou, please. You’re not going to cause a ruckus, are you?”  
   
Kouyou was barely listening to his words, too blinded by his anger.  
   
“This man has the  _fucking_ nerve to send you wine right in front of my face,” Kouyou spat, suddenly looking so fearsome Yuu cowered a little himself. “Yuu, I’m not going to take this lying down. I’m really sorry. I’m not going to allow this to happen without a word.” And then he was getting up from his seat, preparing to stride over to Die’s table.  
   
“Kouyou, Kouyou, please,” Yuu pleaded, getting up from his seat himself, attempting to block Kouyou from walking any further. “This confrontation is unnecessary. We should just go.”  _Please_. Please don’t hear things you don’t want to hear about me, and then leave me right after.  
   
Yuu was suddenly so,  _so_  afraid.  
   
“Yuu.” Kouyou’s voice was lethal. “Please get out of my way.”  
   
“Kouyou…” Yuu had never seen Kouyou so angry like this; and so… _so_  selfish, in a way that it was the first time Yuu had seen Kouyou caring about his desires over Yuu’s ones. Kouyou always listened to Yuu’s wishes, always did his best to fulfill every one of them, always placed Yuu’s happiness as his priority. But now, Kouyou wasn’t seeing anything else. Kouyou couldn’t even see Yuu.  
   
Oh,  _god_ , what mess had he gotten himself into?  
   
Yuu had no choice but to follow after the blond as he made his way over to Die’s table, the raven feeling absolutely miserable as he did so. He just hoped this was a small prank that Die was playing on him, and that this wasn’t going to end up in an ugly fight. Remembering how bitter Die had sounded through text, Yuu didn’t have much hopes for a ‘small prank’, though.  
   
If the man had started cultivating feelings for Yuu, Yuu was positive Die wouldn’t let this go without hurting Kouyou back in the process. Die had never been much of a manipulative man in all the times that Yuu had spent with him, but Die wasn’t necessarily the greatest person around, either. As an attorney, it was Die’s job to twist and turn the evidence, to formulate truths that weren’t even there. It was exactly because of his occupation that Yuu always was extra precautious when it came to dealing with Die; this man knew how to  _lie_  to get what he wanted, and Yuu couldn’t ever trust someone like that.  
   
Thinking about it now, Yuu should have broken things off with Die as soon as he could in the first place. He  _shouldn’t_ have dragged things out. Everything was all his fault… and now he was going to suffer the repercussions from it.  
   
Die reclined in a relaxed manner in his seat, a smile resting on his face as he waited for Kouyou to come to a halt before him. Once Kouyou had stopped right next to his table, Die was eager to greet Kouyou with a hearty smile.  
   
“Nice to meet you, Takashima,” Die didn’t bother standing up; he merely took another sip from his wine glass. “It’s an honour to finally meet you.” His lack of concern at Kouyou’s presence only insulted Kouyou further.  
   
Kouyou didn’t even bother asking for his name, nor did he look surprised that Die knew of him. Words spewed forth Kouyou’s mouth in a tone that was laced with utter malice, sending Yuu shivering behind him.  
   
“Listen up, I don’t know who you think you are, but you had  _no_  fucking right to send my lover a bottle of wine like that, as if you’re just buying him a drink in a cheap pub down the street!” Kouyou snapped, his fists clenching harder with every word he spoke. “You’re also completely disrespecting my presence as his partner. You better fucking apologize to my lover for such an act, or I’ll be forced to get physical with you.”  
   
Kouyou was so,  _so_ angry. Yuu wanted so much to pull him into an embrace and shower him with kisses, hoping that would persuade the blond to finally go, but Yuu could only watch as the confrontation between the two men before him unfolded.  
   
Die’s smile only widened at Kouyou’s words, much to Kouyou’s aggravation.  
   
“Very strong words to say,” Die clucked his tongue, saying. His eyes lazily rolled across to Yuu. “Aoi, it’s so nice to see you again.”  
   
Kouyou’s fists instantly went slack at that mention, appalled at the thought of Yuu knowing this man.  
   
“Aoi?” Kouyou asked, momentarily confused at the sound of his lover’s nickname. He turned back to face the younger man. “Yuu… You know this man?”  
   
Yuu’s heart was beating so  _fast_  in a mixture of panic and fear that Yuu hadn’t even realized he wasn’t breathing. Kouyou’s eyes were looking expectantly to him, a hint of confusion and betrayal underlying them, and Yuu didn’t know how to answer up to any of that.  
   
“We used to have an arrangement,” Die answered plainly, a smile upon his lips as he looked to Yuu. “Right, Aoi? Or does Takashima Kouyou not know you  _even_ used to be a sugar baby?”  
   
“Don’t talk to him like that,” Kouyou snarled, eyes burning ferociously with a glare towards the man. “You don’t have a right to speak to him like that!”  
   
The sight of Kouyou promptly coming to Yuu’s defence like this made it even harder for Yuu to answer up to the blond. Kouyou would never  _think_ of hurting Yuu. Kouyou had mentioned several times it pained him to even imagine Yuu upset because of him.  
   
So how could Yuu bear to hurt Kouyou like this?  
   
“I know him, Kouyou,” Yuu admitted, quietly, anxiously chewing his lips over and over again as he spoke. “He’s Die. We really did have an arrangement together.” Revealing just this fact made him feel as if half the weight had already been lifted off his shoulders.  
   
Kouyou’s rage was only fuelled further at that knowledge. “Is that so.”  
   
“That’s right,” Die sighed, lustful eyes scanning up Yuu’s body, to his face. Kouyou was restraining himself  _so_  much right then and there not to deliver a punch to Die’s face, unable to stand the sight of another man checking out his lover so cheaply like that.  
   
“Aoi, I thought we were having a pretty good time together. I just wanted to celebrate the end of our relationship with that gift of wine. Or is your lover too petty to  _even_  allow you to enjoy that small gift from me?”  
   
He was mocking Kouyou right in front of his face.  
   
“We didn’t even have a relationship!” Yuu yelled, afraid Kouyou would get the wrong idea after hearing Die’s words. “Stop trying to fool yourself! You and I both know I only ever stayed with you because of the money!”  
   
Die looked disappointed by Yuu’s answer.  
   
“I was considering taking you as a wife eventually, you know,” Die murmured, feigning sadness. “I really liked you as a companion. You’re so young and bubbly and  _god_ …” Die gave an approving whistle as he admired Yuu’s figure. “So hot. So, so hot. Your skills in bed are commendable, to say the least. Ha, Takashima, you would know, right? I especially love it when Aoi dons his lingerie… I really can’t resist him when he’s playful like that.”  
   
That immediately set something off inside of Kouyou.  
   
“You  _fucking_ bastard you dare to say that to  _my_ fucking face again–” Kouyou was almost hurling a fist over, had Yuu not pull Kouyou’s arm back in an attempt to restrain him.  
   
“Kouyou, please, don’t,” Yuu begged, clutching Kouyou’s arm close to him. “Let’s just go, alright? He’s not worth our time.”  
   
“I’m not leaving until he apologizes to the both of us,” Kouyou seethed angrily through his teeth. “I’m not leaving until he’s on his fucking  _knees_!”  
   
Yuu’s eyes widened at Kouyou’s words. He hadn’t known of Kouyou to be such a prideful person until now – he hadn’t known that a simple gesture of another man sending a gift to his lover would wound Kouyou’s ego so much. Yuu couldn’t fault Kouyou for feeling like that, however; the older man was a CEO who was so used to being in control, and any man in his position was bound to hold some form of arrogance. Yuu just didn’t expect it to be revealed now… in this sort of situation.  
   
“You’re insane if you think I’m apologizing for my generosity,” Die was beginning to bark himself, growing increasingly pissed at Kouyou’s hostility. “You stole Aoi away from me.  _I_ should be the one making you go on your fucking knees. I should have known something was wrong when Aoi stopped replying to my texts. But the greatest blow was when he told me he wanted a break-up last week. And after  _all_ I’ve done for him, too!”  
   
_He said it_.  
   
Yuu’s face drained its color all at once. Die had revealed the matter Yuu had been hoping he wouldn’t  _ever_ have had to inform Kouyou of.  
   
_Kouyou knows now_.  
   
In that one split second, Yuu watched as Kouyou turned to him, and eyes that were once so full with trust for the raven slowly faded into shock; and then disappeared into nothingness. Kouyou’s strong, sturdy shoulders sank down, his eyes falling to a close, his heart stilling in the silence.  
   
_I trusted you._  
   
In that one split second, Yuu watched as Kouyou began to doubt everything he ever knew about Yuu.  
   
And one split second after, it was almost gone.  
   
“Tell me what he said isn’t true,” Kouyou asked softly, still taking care to be extra gentle when it came to speaking to the raven, the anger he had from before dissipating into the air. “Tell me it isn’t true, Yuu.”  
   
_Tell me you didn’t lie to me_.  
   
He was almost pleading, now. He was pleading for Yuu to tell him the truth, even though all he really wanted was the lie. Kouyou wanted nothing more to hear that Yuu hadn’t done what he’d thought of, because he’d never have believed Yuu would lie to him like this; Yuu out of anyone else, Yuu who had become the love of his life.  
   
Yuu was almost in tears. Kouyou was so,  _so_  hurt, Yuu could see it. But Kouyou still didn’t want to believe what he’d just heard; he never wanted to. Because there was no way Yuu could have been cheating on him, right? There was no way his sweet princess could have been doing that to him. He couldn’t even fathom the thought of his babydoll lying straight to his face. Yuu couldn’t possibly be the kind of person he hated the most.  
   
“It’s just a misunderstanding,” Yuu murmured, his hand reaching for Kouyou’s. Kouyou’s heart hardened at Yuu’s words, and he pulled away. Yuu only grew more uneasy – Kouyou was rejecting his touch. Yuu had never thought he would live to see this day; he’d never thought Kouyou would  _ever_ push him away like this, and he’d never imagine how it would feel if Kouyou ever did.  
   
Yuu now knew it hurt like a thousand rose thorns had just pierced right through his heart.  
   
“Kouyou…  _please_ , I swear, I haven’t been seeing him in weeks. He’s just saying all these things now to make you upset–”  
   
“You broke up with him last week?!” Kouyou’s tone rose to a crescendo – the first time Kouyou had  _ever_  raised his voice at the raven – and all the anger from before was quickly flooding his face again. “Yuu, we’ve been together for a  _month_. You told me from the start you weren’t seeing anybody else!”  
   
Die, who had been confused by the unexpected tension between the couple, seemed to finally realize what was going on now, and it was with a smile that he relaxed in his seat, and watched the situation unravel before him slowly.  
   
“I wasn’t seeing anyone else, I swear,” Yuu cried out, flinching at the harsh manner Kouyou was speaking to him in. Was this what Akira meant by the blond having anger issues? Was Kouyou usually this temperamental at work? It  _scared_ Yuu to bits. Yuu wasn’t sure how to handle the blond. This wasn’t the Kouyou Yuu knew. This wasn’t the Kouyou Yuu had fallen in love with, at all…  
   
“Kouyou, please… You don’t understand. You’re not listening to me.”  
   
“Answer me this one question,” Kouyou’s voice shook as he spoke, his face turned to the side. Yuu registered with a churning stomach that Kouyou couldn’t even  _look_  at him in the eye anymore. “Answer me if you’ve ever gone out with anyone else while you were going out with me.”  
   
Yuu bit his lip, his face pained. He couldn’t answer that question. He  _couldn’t_. Yuu had been so used to lying to all of his sugar daddies about his exclusivity that he hadn’t thought twice about doing the same to Kouyou when he’d first met him.  
   
He hadn’t realized Kouyou would react so strongly to it. And if he had, he wouldn’t have…  
   
“We weren’t even together back then,” Yuu argued, numbly choking upon his words, and he watched as Kouyou turned to him at his reply; the blond’s eyes widening as if he was startled by the raven’s open defiance at this time.  
   
And in that second, any ounce of love Kouyou ever harboured for Yuu was gone.  
   
Kouyou was humiliated. He’d had come to this table, expecting to confront a stranger who was trying to hit on his lover, only to find out that his lover had been keeping an endless amount of secrets from him. Only to find out that the real betrayal he would face lay right in front of him, all this time.  
   
And Kouyou couldn’t stand it. He  _wouldn’t_ accept knowing that he had thought wrong about Yuu, he wouldn’t accept that it had been his fault. Kouyou had been humiliated, and Yuu had been the cause of it.  
   
Yuu could tell, because Kouyou’s eyes were flashing to meet his eyes that very instant, the blond’s gaze completely soulless, entirely lifeless. All that warmth and love that Kouyou always reserved for Yuu was gone. Yuu briefly remembered the way Kouyou’s eyes always lit up whenever Yuu did or said something to make Kouyou happy – and he realized in that very second he might never get any of that back again.   
   
Kouyou looked to him so coldly, as if Yuu had turned into a stranger he’d never known. As if Yuu was  _no one_. As if Yuu had turned into one of the many others that Kouyou had to deal with in his line of work; just puppets to be used, then thrown aside.  
   
Yuu knew he had been cast out.  
   
And Yuu could see it in Kouyou’s dark, inscrutable eyes. Yuu could see it so crystal clear, because Kouyou’s eyes had grown so empty. Yuu wanted to believe Kouyou was just masking all the hurt and anger to himself, but he wouldn’t know anymore, not when Kouyou was making it so clear now that he wasn’t going to let Yuu in anymore.  
   
“I apologize for disrupting your dinner,” Kouyou abruptly said, turning to face Die. “We’ll take our leave now.”  
   
It was almost a joke, how courteous he was being to Die, now that all of his anger was being directed towards Yuu.  
   
“Leave,” Kouyou spoke roughly to the raven, barely glancing over to Yuu. He turned and made his way past their dinner table, making no move to sit down and continue their meal.  
   
Devastated tears ran down Yuu’s face in streaks as the raven cried noiselessly to himself, following after Kouyou’s blurry figure. It was only after he stepped away from Die’s table that he saw the whole restaurant had their eyes on him. How long had everyone been watching Kouyou and him?  
   
_Oh_ , to think of how many people had witnessed Kouyou and Yuu’s first fight like this…  
   
Yuu wrapped his arms around himself, trying to seek some form of comfort and solace as his heart shattered into a thousand fragments inside of him. He’d always thought Kouyou would always be the one to mend his heart. He’d never thought he’d be left alone by him.  
   
And just when he had decided to give his entire heart to Kouyou, Kouyou took it into his hands and ripped it ruthlessly apart.  
   
~  
   
The walk back to the car was short, but it felt like ages to Yuu. After making payment at the restaurant, Kouyou had led the way back, always walking a few steps ahead of Yuu, refusing to align with Yuu’s pace. This Kouyou was so different and distant from Yuu, so much so that Yuu could hardly recognize the man in front of him. Kouyou was always so sweet, so nurturing, so gentle, and he always held Yuu’s hand or wrapped an arm around Yuu as they walked. Now Kouyou was avoiding any chance of contact with him, as if Yuu was sick with a contagious disease.  
   
Yuu hadn’t felt this unwanted in a long, long time.  
   
How could Kouyou have so easily forgotten about everything they had been through together to get to where they were now? How could Kouyou forget the million dates they had been on and the thousand kisses exchanged and the flirty texts and the  _I’ll miss you until I see you again_ s and the  _I’ll wait forever until you love me back_ s? How could any sane human being throw all of these aside in a snap without feeling a shred of regret? How could Kouyou give so much then take it all back?  
   
They were only a few more steps to the car, when Yuu refused to endure the stifling silence anymore. It was funny, how hours before, Kouyou had been the one unable to sit in total silence with Yuu.  
   
Now Yuu was the one on his knees, begging for Kouyou to hear him out.  
   
“Won’t you even look at me?!” Yuu yelled at the blond, more desperate tears creeping out of his eyes as he tried to find his voice to speak. “Am I nothing to you anymore?!”  
   
_Please tell me I’m everything to you. Please tell me I’m not nothing._  
   
Kouyou paused in his footsteps, still making no move to turn to him.  
   
“It’s late. I’m sending you home.”  
   
He didn’t sound like Kouyou anymore. He sounded foreign, and detached, and unfeeling. He didn’t even look like he wanted Yuu anymore.  
   
_He didn’t want Yuu anymore_ , Yuu sobbed as the crippling realization sunk down into him. This had been Yuu’s biggest fear from the very start; the only thing that had been stopping Yuu from giving his heart entirely to Kouyou. Kouyou had spent so much time convincing Yuu he wouldn’t ever hurt the raven, and Yuu had fallen for all of those lies.  
   
And here Kouyou was, proving every one of Yuu’s fears right. Kouyou would dump him aside once he found no use of the raven. Kouyou would heartlessly do so without a second thought, because Kouyou had all the power – and Yuu had not. Yuu had  _nothing_.  
   
Yuu was just a twenty-one year old university student, ready to be used by Kouyou at his whim, ready to be discarded whenever Kouyou was sick of the raven.  
   
“You didn’t even hear me out,” Yuu whimpered, rubbing at his red, blood-shot eyes, his throat closed tight, his voice strained. “You… you didn’t even let me explain!”  
   
Kouyou seemed to be irritated by Yuu’s words, for he was turning to the younger man in a second, boilingly raising his voice once more.  
   
“You want to explain? Fine, explain, then!” Kouyou growled, fiery anger returning to his lifeless eyes. “Explain! Explain how you could bring yourself to lie to me like this! Explain how I’ve spent all this fucking time trying to make you happy when you had no decency to be honest with me from the very start! Explain how I have thought of you to be everything I could ever wanted,  _only_ to hear from another man’s mouth you  _weren’t_! Explain to me how you could hurt me like this, when I’ve never wanted much from you. All I wanted was to know your heart was true and faithful to me. That’s  _all_ I ever wanted, Yuu. I never asked for much,” Kouyou’s lips were trembling again, showing subtle signs of vulnerability; of the old Kouyou Yuu had once known of.  
   
“I would give  _everything_  I ever had to you. I would have given you everything. I never asked for anything else,” Kouyou repeated, over and over again, and for a minute Yuu sincerely believed he was going to end up in tears. “I would have given everything to you. I really would. I never wanted much. I wanted to give you everything.”  
   
Yuu was left speechless at the sight.  
   
He still loved Yuu, the raven was sure of it. Kouyou couldn’t bear to hurt Yuu, too. But Kouyou couldn’t understand why Yuu had done this to him, and he couldn’t forgive something like this so easily. Yuu knew he had scarred Kouyou’s heart, Kouyou’s trust; and to have done that to someone who loved you with every inch of his soul was an act Yuu knew had broken Kouyou entirely.  
   
Kouyou still loved him. He just wasn’t sure about Yuu anymore.  
   
“Please don’t do this to us,” Yuu whispered, holding on to the small ounce of hope he had, holding on to the remains of the old Kouyou before him. “To me. Please. Kouyou, I’ve given my entire heart to you. You can’t do this to me. You can’t leave me like this. You can’t just make me fall in love and then cast me out. It’s not fair. You promised me things wouldn’t end up like this. You said you would never let me go. You’re not the type of person to abandon all your promises like this. I know you’re not.”  
   
Kouyou said nothing for a while – that Yuu sincerely thought the blond was going to have a change of heart after hearing what Yuu had said. But then the older man gazed over to Yuu disinterestedly, all hints of the old Kouyou gone.  
   
“You’re not explaining,” was the only thing Kouyou said, sounding as cold as he did before, opening the door to his car, slipping inside of his Lamborghini.  
   
Yuu cupped a hand over his mouth then, muffling his pained sobs to himself, eyes fluttering shut as he attempted to nurse the worsening ache in his already broken heart.

All this time, he had wondered if there was anything in the world that could _ever_ make Kouyou mad at him.

Now he knew.

~  
   
Throughout the whole car ride, Kouyou made no move to look at Yuu. Yuu cried softly to himself, despite hating himself for doing so, unwilling to allow Kouyou witness him in such a pathetic state. Yuu couldn’t control the tears that kept flowing, though. They ran and they ran and they ran and Kouyou didn’t even blink twice.  
   
If this had been under any other circumstance, Kouyou would be pacifying Yuu right now, sweet-talking him and kissing him into oblivion until Yuu wouldn’t cry anymore. Kouyou would do  _anything_ in his power to make Yuu smile again. And Yuu would eventually give in and allow himself to be pampered right under Kouyou’s care, snuggling right up to his kisses.  
   
But this wasn’t any other circumstance. The Kouyou Yuu knew was no more. And those kisses were gone with the wind. The playful twinkle in Kouyou’s eyes had faded away. Those strong arms that always embraced him were now keeping their distance. The air was so tense between them it was choking the raven up.  
   
Kouyou was just right here, but his heart was so far away.  
   
Yuu didn’t know why there was a part of him that wouldn’t give up, though. He refused to believe Kouyou would leave him like this; he refused to believe Kouyou could forget every part of him so easily, when the both of them had memorized every inch of each other’s bodies since so long ago. Kouyou couldn’t abandon him like this. Kouyou couldn’t.  
   
“Y…You wanted t-this relationship,” Yuu began softly, hiccupping uncontrollably in between his tears. Kouyou continued looking straight ahead, concentrating on the road before him. “K…Kouyou… This was your idea. Let me remind you that this was what you wanted. And now you’re leaving me j-just like t-this?”  
   
Yuu’s glossy eyes looked to him expectantly, waiting for an answer, but Kouyou’s expression remained blank and emotionless. Dejected, Yuu looked back to his lap, wet hot tears leaking out his eyes once more.  
   
He should have known.  
   
“Maybe you’re right,” Kouyou answered quietly, his tone less domineering than before. Yuu’s heart pounded furiously at the unexpected sound of his voice, a small flutter of hope re-igniting inside of him.  
   
“Yuu, you always said our relationship was going too fast. Maybe you’re right. It’s not a good sign. I always thought it meant everything was meant to be, but maybe you’re right. Maybe I was delusional. Overly sentimental. A hopeless romantic. I didn’t know better.”  
   
That small spark of hope blew out as quickly as it had been lit – Yuu was completely disillusioned.  _How could Kouyou say that?_ All this time, Kouyou had been the one person to believe in everything they were supposed to be. Even if Yuu didn’t and couldn’t believe in anything else, Kouyou did. Kouyou’s love for Yuu was resolute. Steadfast. Unyielding. Kouyou  _never_  gave up.  
   
“How could you say all of these to me?” Yuu choked out, each word pitched higher than the last. “You’re going back on all the things you ever said to me. Do you have no guilt?! What kind of man are you, to so easily discard every promise you’ve ever made to me?!”  
   
Kouyou’s mouth twitched, vexed by Yuu’s words, but he didn’t respond.  _Coward_ , Yuu thought to himself, wiping at his damp eyes.  
   
“I believed everything you said to me,” Yuu murmured, his heart squeezing in sadness, his head turning to the window, his vision clouding with tears once more.  
   
“I believed every word. I thought you were crazy sometimes. But you made me happy. And safe. And loved. And you’re so perfect. And you made me love you like I haven’t for anyone before,” the raven’s throat was starting to ache, the emotion welling up inside of him too hard for him to take.  
   
“And now you’re just throwing me away. You made me open up my heart and let you in but now you’re throwing me away. Don’t you know how this makes me feel? Don’t you  _care_ how used I feel?”  
   
Kouyou still didn’t answer.  
   
Yuu didn’t bother trying anymore after that.  
   
They approached the carpark of Yuu’s block of apartments soon after, and once the car came to a halt, Yuu gave one last glance to Kouyou, his eyes absorbing every feature of his, every curve and every outline, every blemish and every imperfection, every place Yuu had ever kissed or his skin had once collided with.  
   
Yuu might never see him again.  
   
And Yuu found himself asking Kouyou just that, though he knew the answer already.  
   
“Will I… never see you again?” Yuu asked hesitantly, his voice so faint and muted it was almost inaudible to hear.  
   
Kouyou’s eyes gazed to him then, traces of tenderness and affection swirling in those dark orbs of his.  _You still love me_ , Yuu insisted in his heart, refusing to believe any otherwise.  _Tell me you still love me, Kouyou_.  
   
“Go home, Yuu,” Kouyou said, gently.  
   
Yuu’s heart broke.  
   
Yuu had planned to at least offer up one last smile to the blond, but the raven couldn’t bring himself to do so. Taking his bag with him, Yuu pushed open the car door and shielded his eyes with his bangs, resisting the urge to let out a loud sob until he was a distance away from Kouyou.  
   
After Yuu had gotten out of the car and had slammed the door right shut behind him, Yuu knew right then it was over. They were done. They were separated, now. Back in their two different worlds. Back to the routine life Yuu had been so used to.  
   
And it was taking all of Yuu right now to keep himself together, to not curl up against the floor and bawl his eyes out. Not in front of Kouyou. Not when he was still here.  
   
Yuu hastened his steps to the lifts, never even offering one last glance back. Only one thought reverberated over and over again in his head, wounding his heart as it crossed his mind each time –  
   
_He doesn’t want me anymore. Kouyou doesn’t want me anymore._  
   
~  
   
Kouyou watched Yuu’s fading back from his car, making no move to leave until he had seen the raven disappear safely behind the lifts.  
   
Then, ensuring no one else was in sight, Kouyou smiled bitterly to himself and reclined in his seat, finally allowing the warm dampness around his eyes to spill down his cheeks.  
   
_Don’t go._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My recommended song for this chapter would be All You Had To Do Was Stay / Taylor Swift :>
> 
> I hadn't realized this part would span to 2 chapters again!
> 
> I have been soooo excited for this chapter, you have no idea. I have envisioned this scene right from the very beginning when I started SA (I started SA in Nov last year :D) anddd this is the chapter I've been waiting 28 chapters to write for! okay, you guys probably think I'm a real sadist muahaha but-- I've been building this up sooo much. so many little hints of Kou's possessiveness and Yuu's nonchalance when it comes to dealing with his sugar daddies situation, so many hints of Kou's intolerance and so many "I'll never lie to you, Yuu". so many of Yuu's "it's not a big deal, right? Kouyou won't get mad at me. Kouyou never gets mad at me." so many assumptions! so many everything! (yes, I am way too excited for my otp to break-up.) 
> 
> ...towards the end of writing this chapter I actually started crying for Kouyou ;A; since this is Yuu's story, 90% of the time you get his POV, and in this chapter it's 99% Yuu's POV. and Kouyou seems like a jerk but I felt so sad for him throughout this whole thing... he's loved Yuu so much only to... mm-hmm. the illusion is broken. no more prince charming no more princesses no more fairytale romance no more nothing. Kouyou and Yuu get a strict reality check with each other and realize there's so much more.
> 
> <3 I'd love to hear what you guys thought of this! (also, I bet no one saw Die coming!) and I bet some of you are reaallly relieved the attorney issue has finally exploded into everyone's faces because it's been in suspense for the past 20 odd chapters, haha.
> 
> See you again soon!
> 
> (ps: 29 chapters and still going strong!!! wow!!! I'm so happy!!!)


	30. Chapter 30

Raising up his shaky fist, Yuu knocked against the apartment door, eyes too foggy with tears to bother searching through his bag for his keys. He hoped to god that Yutaka was in, to receive him at the door, because Yuu didn’t fancy the idea of sitting himself right outside of their apartment, crying alone for the rest of the night.  
   
_Go home, Yuu._  
   
Kouyou’s last words to him never left his mind. Yuu would no longer see him again. Yuu would no longer see those lifeless eyes brighten up at the sight of his presence; he would no longer be the reason for Kouyou’s happiness. Yuu would no longer feel those strong arms around him; he would no longer have shoulders to lean upon, or a chest to nuzzle his face up to. Yuu would no longer have those lips to kiss; he would no longer have a mouth to claim, nor heat to warm him up with.  
   
Yuu would no longer have his heart; not this time, not anymore.  
   
But who was really to blame?  
   
A groggy-looking Yutaka, who looked as if he’d just pulled an all-nighter and had only gotten three hours of sleep so far, opened the door swiftly for Yuu. Once Yutaka’s eyes landed upon Yuu’s teary state, however, the brunet was jolted up awake, his eyes immediately, shocked by the heartbreaking sight of Yuu like this. Yutaka’s face scrunched up into anger quickly after that, all thoughts going to Kouyou, knowing no one other than the blond could have done this to Yuu. Yuu had always been so perky, so bubbly a person, no matter the circumstance; but ever since Takashima Kouyou had entered his life, things started changing. Things became different. And every of Yuu’s mood flunctuations could be pinpointed to the older man himself.  
   
Yutaka never trusted that motherfucker.  
   
To think that man had full control of Yuu’s heart was something that evoked jealousy from Yutaka, but those feelings Yutaka could subdue – only with the knowledge that Kouyou wasn’t mistreating Yuu.  
   
But seeing Yuu now, with his swollen, puffy eyes, his tear-stained cheeks, his figure suddenly looking so small and hunched as he stood in front of the door, Yutaka knew Kouyou had fucked it all up, and abused the very heart he had been so fortunate to gain ownership to.  
   
“It’s Kouyou, isn’t it,” Yutaka snapped, his heart aching at every new tear sliding down Yuu’s cheek. “He made you cry.”  
   
Yuu said nothing; he only took a step forward, and weakly fell right into Yutaka’s arms. Yutaka was surprised by the sudden skinship, but he wasn’t complaining. Instinctively wrapping his arms around Yuu’s slim frame, Yutaka hushed the raven as gently as he could, heart sinking at the thought that he hadn’t ever seen Yuu so broken like this before. Yuu had been upset on several occasions, sure, but it had never been like this – Yuu’s eyes glassy and faraway, his entire body trembling non-stop in Yutaka’s grasp, Yuu’s white-washed face painted with dried tears.  
   
“Kouyou doesn’t want me anymore,” Yuu murmured softly, confirming Yutaka’s suspicions, Yuu’s lips almost curved up in an agonized smile. His fingers desperately clung onto Yutaka’s shirt, his grip tightening with every word he uttered. “He just left. He just left me, Yutaka. He left, like…”  
   
Yuu’s smile painfully widened, wet tears leaking out the corners of his eyes as he spoke. “Like I was nothing. Like I never mattered to him at all. He didn’t even give me a chance. Give us a chance. He left, cruelly, heartlessly, and now I can’t feel my heart anymore. I can’t feel it beating, and I can’t feel myself breathing,” Yuu’s voice was caught in his throat as he struggled to describe the excruciating pain in his heart.  
   
“I feel like I’ve died inside out. Is this what heartbreak feels like? Is this how it feels to have thought you knew someone, only to realize you never knew them at all? Is this how it feels to be dumped aside by the very person you love? Is this how it feels like to watch them go, knowing you might just have lost them forever?”  
   
It is.  
   
But Yutaka didn’t want to answer that; didn’t want to take this moment away from Yuu. Yutaka knew every inch of heartbreak perfectly – the lonely, sleepless nights, the dashed hopes and crushed fantasies, the daily nightmares of losing Yuu all over again – because he had been through it all. He knew how it felt, to watch as the one you loved with your entire heart cast you aside, without a second thought; even if they had done it without any intention at all. He knew  _exactly_  how it felt, to have loved someone for so long, to envision a perfect future with them together, only to see them leave, knowing you might have lost your chance with them forever.  
   
And Yuu had always been so oblivious to Yutaka’s feelings, always unaware of what he did to Yutaka; but the pretty raven would never know how his one small smile could make the rest of Yutaka’s day, nor would he ever know how his one word could so easily hold Yutaka’s heart right at his fingertips, ready to be crushed anytime Yuu so wished.  
   
Yuu wouldn’t know – not until now, at least. And Yutaka could only watch as Yuu felt the same pain Yutaka had felt, to have known love so close only to have it taken away. Except Yuu had been luckier than him in that aspect, for his heart had been reciprocated by the one he loved; and Kouyou, too, for having the opportunity to embrace and kiss and take care of Yuu when he got the chance to.  
   
The thought that Kouyou had been gifted Yuu’s heart, only to have hurt it so ruthlessly because he hadn’t understood how fragile Yuu would be, gripped Yutaka entirely with rage. Yutaka had warned him. Yutaka  _had_ warned Kouyou. Yutaka had instructed him to take special care of the raven, because Yuu was special, and he didn’t open up to anyone just so easily. And if Yuu decided you were worth it, you had better take good care of his heart.  
   
But Kouyou had fucked it all up. And Yutaka could handle Yuu breaking his heart – but he could  _not_  handle Yuu having his heart broken so carelessly like that. Yuu was so beautiful, meant to be untouched and cherished just like porcelain, but now he was shattered beyond pieces, just because his owner hadn’t handled him with care. Just because Takashima fucking Kouyou was blind enough to have discarded something so priceless that other men would die to have.  
   
And Yutaka would  _never_  do that to Yuu. Yutaka would have treasured Yuu, so much, more than life itself, beyond his own capable means.  
   
“I’ll kill him, I swear,” Yutaka hissed, his arms tightening around Yuu, burying his lips into Yuu’s hair. “Yuu, I won’t let him get away with this. You have me. I’ll protect you. I’ll make him pay for this, I swear. If he’s still downstairs, I’ll go down right now. I’ll make sure he regrets ever doing this to you. I’ll definitely make sure of it, Yuu.”  
   
Yuu squeezed his eyes shut, allowing the taller man to embrace him closer. It was strange how much comfort Yutaka’s touch could bring to him, and it was strange how calming it was, to know that even if Yuu had no one else, he had Yutaka to rely on, to know that Yutaka would never leave him and always defend him, no matter what.  
   
But he wasn’t Kouyou.  
   
“You won’t find him. He’s gone,” Yuu whispered, and the words tasted so bitter on his tongue as Yuu affirmed that very fact on his lips. He was gone. Kouyou was gone. Kouyou had left. There was no more Kouyou in his life. Yuu might never see him again.  
   
Yutaka felt Yuu’s heavy sentiment in the silence, and Yutaka’s heart sank further to his stomach, weighing like stones. Yuu was destroyed by this, he could tell. Yuu had lost a part of himself to Kouyou, and Yutaka knew the feeling all too well.  
   
He had long lost a part of himself to Yuu, too.  
   
“Forget about him,” Yutaka persuaded, lowering his voice to a whisper, clutching Yuu tighter into his grasp. “Yuu. Don’t lose your mind over a man like this. He’s out of your life, now. It breaks my heart to see you like this. Please forget about him.”  
   
Yutaka never wished for Yuu and Kouyou’s relationship to reach a bad end, but Yutaka had long promised himself that if Kouyou, or any other man, ever failed to appreciate Yuu for what he was worth, Yutaka would _never_  give up on pursuing his love for the raven. If there was any one Yutaka could count on that wouldn’t ever hurt Yuu, it would be himself. Yutaka would never let anyone lay a hand on him. Yuu’s heart would be well-sheltered in his hands.  
   
But forgetting about Kouyou was something that was easier said than done.  
   
It was something Yuu couldn’t bring himself to do; at least not now, not when his heartbreak was still so fresh and his withering hopes were still not completely daunted. The very thought of having to forget Kouyou, just as easily as Kouyou would forget him, enabled more tears to furiously slip down Yuu’s cheeks, the little composure Yuu had kept together from before falling apart too quickly in just mere seconds.  
   
Yuu couldn’t picture never seeing Kouyou anymore, he really couldn’t. Just yesterday, they had been only been rolling around in sheets, teasing each other with declarations of love, eyes sweetly gazing back into each other’s eyes. He could still feel Kouyou’s well-built arms around him, his lips against Yuu’s neck, the overpowering smell of his musky odor.  
   
Now Kouyou was gone, leaving Yuu’s heart stranded in this mess.  
   
The worst thing? Yuu couldn’t forget any of Kouyou’s promises to him. Every single one of them.  
   
_Yuu, I would never let anyone take priority over you, you have to believe me. I promise. With all my heart. I’ll never let you leave my side again. I’ll take you anywhere I go._  
   
“I miss him so much,” Yuu finally choked out, hating himself for admitting this so readily, so weakly. “I miss him already, Yutaka. I miss him, and I want to see him again. I want him to come back and tell me he’s sorry for yelling at me. I would take him back in a heartbeat. I would tell him I would never make him mad again no matter what. I would be willing to pretend today’s fight didn’t happen. Just as long as Kouyou told me he still loved me and wanted me back. I would still love him just as much. I want him back so much. I love him so much and he left me just like this,” Pain welled up increasingly in Yuu’s chest as he spoke, and the raven cried harder into Yutaka’s shoulder, the smile on his face long gone.  
   
_Of course I’ll take care of you, Yuu. I’ll take care of you as long as you allow me to. Even if you had never fallen in love with me, I would pay all the money in the world to have you safe in my arms._  
   
“I want him back so much,” Yuu repeated, sobbing, memories flooding back to his head. So many promises made, so many heartfelt confessions exchanged, so many kisses and  _I’ll never leave you_ s all gone to waste. “I’ll never make him mad again, I promise. I just want him to know that I’ll do anything just to make him happy again. I don’t want him to hate me. I can’t have him hate me… I really can’t. He can’t hate me, when I still love him so much. Please tell him I’ll never make him mad again… Yutaka… I need him to know.”  
   
_I’ll keep you close to me, as long as you’re willing to give your heart to me, Yuu. I’ll never let you go._  
   
 “Yuu…” Yutaka was shell-shocked by the sudden burst of emotion from the raven. He knew Yuu adored the man, yes, but he hadn’t realized the raven had fallen so deep for the blond like this. Yuu was practically  _begging_ now; he was begging for Kouyou to come back, he was begging for his thoughts to be heard, he was begging not to be left alone by him.  
   
Yuu wasn’t going to get over Kouyou so easily.  
   
“Tell me he’s not gone,” Yuu moaned, gasping for breath so harrowingly it felt as if air had been ripped straight out from his lungs. “Yutaka… Tell me I’ll see him again. Tell me I’m just dreaming. Tell me he still loves me. Tell me he’ll wake up tomorrow morning and see I’m not there and he’ll feel a burning sensation in his chest. And it’ll pain him so much he won’t be mad at me anymore. And he’ll forget everything and he’ll call me and tell me he forgives me. And I will take him back without a second thought,” Hot, salty tears flooded down Yuu’s face. “And then I will feel complete again, without this gaping hole in my chest.”  
   
And it was then Yutaka knew he didn’t stand a single chance against Kouyou.  
   
Kouyou meant too much to Yuu.  
   
“I can’t promise you anything,” Yutaka answered quietly, slightly disheartened after hearing Yuu’s words. “I really can’t, Yuu. But I want to tell you this – if any man has ever had the opportunity to have loved you, and earned your love back, that man won’t be able to go by a day without thinking of your face. And I can’t promise you he will call you again, but I can promise you he will think of you the next morning when he sees you’re not there. His heart will ache and he will regret all the things he has ever said to you. And he will wish he were dead. Because I would, Yuu.  
   
Kouyou will wish he were dead, to have broken your heart so violently like this. But he can’t take any of it back. I can’t promise he will call, but he will reach for his phone. And he will look at your name, and he will wish he hadn’t hurt you. And one day, when the hole in your chest has healed, and you have moved on to someone better, Kouyou still won’t forget you. He’ll have to live with the fact that he lost you. Forever.”  
   
Yuu knew Yutaka wasn’t just saying this to comfort him; the brunet meant it from the inner depths of his heart. There was a tense, regretful expression on Yutaka’s face as he narrated his feelings aloud, and it made Yuu heave out a small sigh when he noticed.  
   
“That’s how you feel,” Yuu fluttered his eyes up to the brunet, tears still shimmering around the corners of his lids.“About me. Is that how you feel? About losing me to Kouyou?”  
   
Yutaka hadn’t realized it himself that he had been speaking from experience.  
   
“That’s…” Yutaka bit back his tongue. “That’s not important.” Not as important as dealing with Yuu’s heartbreak right now. Not as important as putting Yuu’s needs first.  
   
Yuu nestled his head against Yutaka’s chest, knowing what the brunet was doing.  
   
“I just never want you to get hurt,” Yutaka rushed to say. “And I can’t bear to see you so upset like this over Takashima Kouyou. I never trusted him much in the first place. But I did, anyway, just to make you happy. And now things have ended up like this.”  
   
Yuu’s eyelids fastened to a close. Why was Yutaka blaming himself for Yuu’s own heartbreak? Yutaka always had a habit of blaming himself for not protecting Yuu well enough when Yuu landed in unfortunate situations.  
   
“It’s not your fault, Yutaka. It really isn’t. And I’m so, so lucky to have someone like you next to me. I really am. I just… I never expected things to end up this way.” Yuu never expected to fall so hard for Kouyou. He never expected Kouyou to ever think of doing this to him. He hadn’t expected their fairytale romance to ever reach this type of ending.  
   
Yutaka gazed to him sadly. “Yuu… Even if he doesn’t call you, I can assure you he’s regretting his decision, right now. He’ll drive home to an empty apartment, an empty house, an empty bed. He’ll go to sleep tonight, wondering if he made the biggest mistake of his life. And he’ll know he did. And he’ll know he can’t change it.”  
   
The image of Kouyou regretting everything he did tonight made Yuu feel better for a moment, and he stopped sniveling to himself, wondering if Kouyou was in pain as much as he was right now. He hoped Kouyou was. He hoped with all his heart Kouyou would change his mind.  
   
Yutaka shook his head and sighed a little, noticing the slight perk in Yuu’s mood. “ _Oh_ , Yuu… You have  _no_ idea what you do to men who have had their hearts stolen by you. You’re always underestimating yourself. You’re always so naïve and oblivious.”  
   
Yuu’s heart skipped a beat at his words. Yutaka was always saying this type of things about him, and it  _always_ helped Yuu regain his confidence and feel better about himself. Perhaps if Kouyou also felt the same way, then…  
   
“I just want to see him again,” Yuu murmured, tone apologetic. “I want to tell him I’m sorry, and I’ll never do anything to hurt him again. I didn’t get the chance to do so earlier, and I just want…”  
   
“Maybe you should sleep it off first,” Yutaka hurried to advise, silently disapproving of the idea.  
   
If Takashima Kouyou had hurt Yuu so badly like this, Yutaka didn’t want to think of what he could do if Yuu ever saw him again. Yutaka didn’t like the thought of Yuu meeting Kouyou again, period. Even if Yuu was so desperate to do so. Simply put, Yutaka no longer trusted the CEO, and he would do whatever it took to prevent Yuu from getting hurt by that man again.  
   
“Make your decision again after you’ve had time to think it over. It’s late, so we should head to bed soon.”  
   
Yuu nodded his head obediently at Yuu’s words, bringing his hands up to his eyes, wiping his tears off. He was getting tired from all the crying, too.  
   
“I’ll make your favorite pancake breakfast tomorrow, so you have that to look forward to,” Yutaka forced a smile to the raven. “So don’t cry anymore. Alright?”  
   
Yutaka always knew what cheered him up the best.  
   
“Okay,” Yuu answered, returning a grateful smile. “At least I’ll have that to look forward to.”  
   
“Of course,” Yutaka gazed affectionately to the raven, liking it better when there was a smile on Yuu’s face. “Anything to make you happy, Yuu.”  
   
_…So forget about him, please_.  
   
~  
   
Yuu placed his phone right next to him the whole night, in hopes that he would awaken to a text message or call from Kouyou. After the talk with Yutaka, Yuu had rejuvenated faith that Kouyou wouldn’t leave him like this, not when Kouyou had always been so upset for being the cause of Yuu’s tears before.  
   
But morning arrived without a single notification at all, and Yuu soon found himself spending hour after hour staring at his phone with an empty heart, the painful realization dawning unto him that Kouyou might have  _really_ given up on their relationship without the least of regret at all.  
   
In the end, Kouyou’s customary morning text failed to come in at its usual time, and Yuu had to swallow down his disappointed tears as he scrolled through his phone’s inbox over and over again, waiting for any hint that Kouyou might have missed him at all.  
   
Was it even possible for Kouyou to be this heartless? Did he really not care for his princess anymore?  
   
Yutaka eventually got him out of bed to have breakfast, but Yuu was back to his mourning state. The raven refused to speak much at the table, only played dejectedly with his food, worrying Yutaka further. The brunet was helpless when it came to the raven, though; he was afraid if he mentioned Kouyou too much, Yuu would end up in tears again, and he didn’t want to render Yuu back to that state.  
   
“Maybe you shouldn’t go for class today,” Yutaka said to him, concerned over the raven’s welfare. “Tell Takanori to take notes for you, or something.”  
   
Yuu’s crestfallen face grew even sadder at his words. “I wonder if Takanori knows about Kouyou and I. I wonder if Kouyou told Akira we’ve broken up, already…”  
   
Yutaka grew even more reluctant to leave Yuu then, especially at the sight of the raven so weak and defenceless like this. But the brunet had his own classes to get to, and he promised Yuu he would come back as soon as he could, just so the raven wouldn’t need to spend too much time on his own, alone.  
   
“Will you promise me you won’t do anything rash when I’m gone?” Yutaka had asked, slightly paranoid at the thought of Yuu doing anything of drastic consequence in his absence. He had never seen Yuu like this before, and he was afraid of what would happen if he left Yuu alone to his thoughts.  
   
“I’m not going to kill myself, Yutaka,” Yuu answered him then with a frown. “Just go for your classes and don’t worry about me.”  
   
“If you ever need anything, just call me, okay? I won’t hesitate to come back for you,” Yutaka said with a sigh.  
   
“Just go already,” Yuu pestered him to leave, annoyed that Yutaka didn’t think of him capable enough to take care of himself.  
   
Yuu later ended up spending the whole morning staring at his phone, his heart anxiously waiting for a message that would never come.  
   
And that was the first morning – since Yuu had known Kouyou – that he hadn’t  _ever_ received a good morning text from the blond.  
   
Yuu never knew how much missing little acts like this could hurt so much.  
   
~  
   
Yuu attempted to watch the television in the afternoon, something he seldom ever did, but was currently doing to take his mind off Kouyou; whilst holding his phone close to his heart as he sat on the sofa in the living room, still waiting for  _anything_  from Kouyou. Yuu didn’t know why he still wasn’t giving up, but after spending so much time with the blond, listening to his promises on a daily basis; listening to Kouyou’s assurances of how he would never leave Yuu of his own accord – Yuu still couldn’t fathom the thought of Kouyou being so mad to the point that he would leave him alone like this.  
   
Maybe Yuu was slowly turning delusional himself. Maybe Yuu had gotten so caught up in this whirlwind of a romance that he was losing touch with reality. Maybe Yuu just couldn’t believe Kouyou to turn his back on the raven like this at all.  
   
While flicking through the television channels, though, Yuu landed on a cooking program that caught his interest. It was clearly meant for domestic housewives who stayed at home all day and had nothing else to do, but Yuu was oddly riveted to the program. The theme for today’s episode had to do with housewives making regular bento sets as lunches for their husbands, and Yuu was  _completely_ fascinated by the idea. Kouyou had talked so much about Yuu being his little domestic housewife that Yuu was sure Kouyou would love it if Yuu prepared a home-made lunch for him. At the same time, Yuu could show how much he truly cared for the blond, and perhaps Kouyou could see how apologetic Yuu was for hurting him, if Yuu were to do this for him.  
   
Perhaps Kouyou would even take him back.  
   
The more Yuu thought about it, the more fixated he was upon the idea. Yuu hardly ever did anything for Kouyou, and it was always Kouyou who was splurging and doing romantic acts for him – but not this time. Not this time. This time, Yuu would be the one taking the initiative. Yuu would show that Kouyou wasn’t alone in his love, at all. Yuu would definitely make Kouyou’s heart melt with this gesture alone. Yuu  _had_ to. Because Yuu couldn’t lose Kouyou like this.  
   
There was only one problem. Kouyou always took Yuu out to eat fancy meals at expensive restaurants, so much so that Yuu had never taken particular note of what foods Kouyou liked to eat. The older man wasn’t a picky eater, and they never ate at the same restaurant more than twice. Kouyou was always so considerate of what Yuu liked to eat as well, and he was always asking after the raven, allowing him to choose their meal for the day.  
   
Which meant that Yuu had no idea what Kouyou liked at all.  
   
And that lone fact shamed Yuu to bits. It was a simple task, to know of your lover’s likes and dislikes, but it was only now that Yuu realized he knew close to nothing about Kouyou at all. Kouyou was the one always caring about Yuu’s own likes and dislikes, and he adhered to every one of them, making sure Yuu was  _always_ happy in whatever they did on their dates. Kouyou never asked for anything else. Kouyou never asked Yuu to pay attention to what the blond wanted, at all.  
   
Was this why Kouyou had flared up so much when Yuu disappointed him with his  _one_  mistake? Was it because Kouyou had never expected much, never wanted much from Yuu; only to get slapped in the face with Yuu’s betrayal?  
   
Yuu quickly rid himself of such depressing thoughts. If he wanted to convince the blond that Yuu’s feelings were true for him, Yuu had to get off on a clean start. He would make a cute bento set for Kouyou, and surprise him at his office. He would shock Kouyou with his thoughtfulness, and then everything would fall back into place; Kouyou would finally see his sincerity, and Kouyou wouldn’t be mad at him anymore. Yuu could finally kiss and hug him again… Yuu could whine and snuggle up to him again. Yuu could do all the things he had once taken for granted with the blond, and he wouldn’t ever treat Kouyou so carelessly this time.  
   
Yuu loved him far too much.  
   
~  
   
Yuu spent an hour racking his head, trying his hardest to come up with an idea for the ingredients to prepare Kouyou’s lunch, but he was stumped when it became clear he knew virtually nothing about what Kouyou fancied at all.  
   
Thankfully for him, Yuu remembered then he had Akira’s name card in his possession, and he knew Kouyou’s best friend would  _definitely_  be able to tell him all these things that Yuu might have failed to notice.  
   
Yuu never thought he would ever have a need to dial Akira’s number on his phone, but there was a first for everything – just like Yuu and Kouyou’s first big fight.  
   
“Hello, Suzuki speaking,” were the first words that greeted Yuu when he dialed Akira’s number, the man picking up only after a few rings. Yuu wasn’t surprised by the speed and effiency, considering Akira worked in a position that he did.  
   
Yuu was also  _so_ relieved to be hearing Akira’s voice again, for it lulled a sense of comfort in him. “Hey… Akira, it’s me, Yuu.”  
   
The line went dead for a second. Yuu’s heart jumped in fear then, wondering if Akira had put down the phone when he realized he was speaking to Yuu.  
   
_Did he know?_  
   
“Ah, hi, Yuu. I was shocked to… hear your voice,” Akira cleared his throat, saying, the professional voice he was using before gradually slipping into the slightly more casual one he always used with Yuu. “So… What’s up?”  
   
_God_ , his friendly tone was so forced it was hard to bear through it.  
   
“You know,” Yuu mumbled, embarrassed. “You know, don’t you?”  
   
Akira sighed, seeing no point in lying to the raven. “I’m sorry, Yuu. Kouyou told me in the morning when he came in. Even if he didn’t tell me, I would have guessed it, anyway. Kouyou’s… very tense. He told me as a heads up in case I questioned him about it – which I would. I’m really sorry to hear about your relationship, Yuu. I don’t understand what happened.”  
   
Yuu smiled bitterly to himself. At least it sounded as if Akira was on his side, and that the man wasn’t holding any grudge against the raven because of Kouyou. It didn’t sound like Kouyou revealed much information to Akira, either, which Yuu wasn’t, again, surprised about. Kouyou had always been a private person, and Yuu didn’t think Kouyou would reveal the details of their break-up to Akira so soon, not when the both of them were still fresh off their heartache.  
   
“I miss him,” Yuu breathed out, his heart twinging in pain at the reminder of Kouyou. “I miss him, Akira. I’ve only seen him yesterday, but I miss him already. And I would do anything to make things right. I love him.”  
   
Akira sounded astonished over the phone. “Wow. I’ve never heard such strong words coming from the princess before.”  
   
Yuu gave a soft smile at Kouyou’s term of endearment for him. Akira had noticed. “I just can’t lose him, Akira. I know he’s mad at me, but I’ll do anything to make it right. And I know he has always been the one to do things for me, but I want to do something for him, this time. Will you help me?”  
   
There was no hesitant over on Akira’s end. “Of course! Yuu, you know I trust you. You’re the first person to have made Kouyou so happy in ages, and I’d hate to see him spiral back into the person he once was before he met you. I want Kouyou to be happy again.”  
   
Yuu let out a sigh of relief at Akira’s willingness to help him. “Well, then, if you would just tell me Kouyou’s favourite food, that would be of a lot of help to me…”  
   
~  
   
Akira was of  _amazing_  help to him. Although Akira emphasized hard on the fact that Kouyou generally hadn’t any preference at all, there was something that Kouyou couldn’t resist – Mentaiko. Who knew the marinated roe, a popular ingredient in Japanese cuisine, would be something that the blond enjoyed the most?  
   
Yuu had seen Kouyou eating it once or twice, in the few times they’d been out at Japanese restaurants, but Yuu never thought anything of it. Kouyou hadn’t mentioned it, either, and when Yuu pointed this out to Akira, the man just laughed and said it wasn’t Kouyou’s style to mention these kinds of things unless he was asked. Akira wouldn’t have realized it too, had Akira not already known the blond for so long, and picked up on the fact that it was something that Kouyou regularly ate whenever they had meals together.  
   
As soon as Akira had given him a few more suggestions, Yuu thanked him and immediately got to work. He surfed the net for recipes, wrote down ideas and what he planned to include in the bento, then hurried out of the apartment to do his grocery shopping after, spending a substantial amount of time in the supermarket, choosing the freshest quality of food for Kouyou.  
   
And when Yutaka got back later that evening, pleasantly surprised by the sudden change in Yuu’s mood and how excited he seemed, he had asked after Yuu, wondering what he’d been doing the entire day. Yuu daren’t tell him about his idea to surprise Kouyou at work, though; Yutaka would beyond a doubt object to it, unhappy at the thought of Yuu meeting Kouyou again. Yuu decided to this secret to himself for now, letting no one but Akira in onto this plan. No one would stop him from doing it.  
   
The next day, Yuu woke up early in the morning to prepare lunch for Kouyou, head dreamy with thoughts of seeing Kouyou again. He didn’t think he would ever see the charming CEO again, not after Kouyou had so harshly indicated they wouldn’t, anymore; but now Yuu was taking things into his own hands, and going up to his office to surprise him. He was positive Kouyou would be  _so_  touched and delighted by Yuu’s romantic gesture that he would overlook what happened on Sunday. Besides, Kouyou must have missed him… Kouyou couldn’t  _not_ have. Kouyou still loved him, Yuu was sure of it.  
   
Yuu wasn’t all that of a splendid cook, and that was why Yutaka usually did most of the cooking – but Yuu could still whip up single dishes, and a bento meal wasn’t too challenging for him to make. Yuu tirelessly poured his heart and sweat into making the food for Kouyou, and even bothered to cut seaweed up into tiny little slices, decorating them in smiley faces on the food in the cutest possible way for the blond. Yuu also had the carrots and broccoli sliced up in small hearts, and yellow egg cut up in the shapes of cartoon rubber duckies, hoping the sight of them would soften the blond’s heart. Kouyou wouldn’t be able to resist Yuu if Yuu made something this cute for him, right?  
   
And for someone who had  _never_ made a bento lunch with anyone before, his first attempt was pretty good, if Yuu had to say so himself.  
   
With one last final addition to the bento set itself, Yuu prepared a tiny paper scroll of words, spelling out ‘I’M SORRY, FORGIVE ME?’, and fitted it right in the middle of the rice.  
   
And then before Yutaka was even awake, Yuu was all dressed up and done, his eyes lined with his usual dark eyeliner, his neck wrapped up with the mint scarf Kouyou had gifted him. Holding the bento set in his hands – now bundled up in a blue, checkered cloth – Yuu swiftly left the apartment, heart brimming with anticipation of returning to Kouyou’s arms once again.


	31. Chapter 31

Except Yuu hadn’t entirely thought his plan through enough.  
   
“You’re here for the internship interview, right?” The lobby receptionist asked, staring blankly straight at Yuu.  
   
Yuu fidgeted a little then, realizing he hadn’t thought of a way to get up to Kouyou’s floor, seeing as he had been so focused on the food preparation part. He was entering a large corporation, for god’s sake. Of  _course_  he would require a pass to get in. The other time he was here, Kouyou had been with him, and Kouyou had his pass on hand to bring Yuu up to his office.  
   
Now Yuu was on his own, a lone university student standing in the midst of all these formally dressed middle-aged workers, all striding past him busily, holding documents and laptops and phones in their hands.  
   
“Uh… Yeah. I’m here for the internship interview,” Yuu said, hoping the receptionist wouldn’t see through his lie. Yuu  _barely_  even looked ready for an interview. He was clad in his jeans and he wasn’t holding anything other than a wrapped up bento lunch in his hands; there was practically no purpose he could have other than to deliver it to someone here.  
   
“Okay then. Take this pass and go up to level 28. Someone will meet you there,” The receptionist said, promptly handing over a pass to Yuu. Yuu almost gawked in shock at how easy that had been.  _Geez_ , Kouyou had to tighten up his security around here. He would mention that to the blond if he ever got a chance to…  
   
Yuu grabbed the pass and made his way to the lifts, watching as everyone’s eyes slowly fell to him when they realized he was significantly younger, and more casually dressed, than the usual crowd. Yuu sheepishly looked down to his feet, hugging his lunch box shyly to himself, wishing Kouyou was right here next to him like before so he wouldn’t feel so intimidated by all these stares – when Yuu’s ears suddenly perked up at the mention of his name from the back.  
   
“It’s him… Yuu, wasn’t it? That was his name…”  
   
“Oh? The one that our CEO brought to Yoshizawa’s gala? Wow, I can’t believe how young he is… He looked older in the photos…”  
   
“He looks like he’s holding a bento box, too. Hah, would that be for our CEO himself? I wonder... He is so lucky, to be able to make lunch for Takashima Kouyou, like this… It’s every woman’s dream to do so for our handsome CEO…”  
   
Yuu’s face reddened when he realized people were beginning to recognize who he was. It really was true, then. Everyone was aware of Yoshizawa’s gala event, when Yuu hadn’t even known of how big a deal it would be, when he had agreed to go with Kouyou in the first place. Everyone knew of his identity as Kouyou’s date, now. And Yuu was soon aware that their stares were not those of contempt or disgust, but were of awe and admiration at Yuu’s presence. Not just  _anyone_ could get together with their CEO, and if someone like Yuu had managed to do it, it must mean Yuu had some star quality they weren’t aware of.  
   
_Everyone_  also assumed he was paying a visit to Takashima Kouyou. And when the lifts finally arrived, no one was surprised to see Yuu pressing for the top floor, where Kouyou’s sole office was located. Yuu was grateful no one was questioning him, since he had been afraid he would be stopped if anyone thought him suspicious enough to be ascending to the CEO’s office.  
   
Little by little, each person in the lift got off at the lower levels of the building, none too many stopping at the higher floors. Yuu guessed that only higher-ranking people like Kouyou or Akira worked on those levels, and not many offices were situated there – considering Kouyou already had a whole level belonging to himself.  
   
When Yuu finally reached Kouyou’s floor, he was thankful to find it relatively quiet and empty, only Kouyou’s private assistant in sight. Chiaki was seated at her desk typing away at her laptop, her face void of expression as usual, and she didn’t seem to notice Yuu’s arrival until the raven had made his way to her, stopping eagerly right before her desk.  
   
Chiaki jolted up at the sight of Yuu, having not been alerted by Kouyou of Yuu’s arrival today.  
   
“Ah! Yuu, right?” Chiaki asked, immediately straining her lips into a smile to greet the raven.  
   
God, she really did look stressed out. Although she was dressed impeccably as a CEO’s secretary, in a proper blazer and pencil skirt, her hair neatly held up in a bun, Chiaki’s face was visibly worn out and her fatigued eyes had bags underneath them. Akira  _really_ wasn’t kidding at all when he said Kouyou was a demanding boss. Plus, if Kouyou had been as tense as Akira had described him to be yesterday, Yuu didn’t doubt Chiaki had been receiving a rough time so far from Kouyou.  
   
“Yeah,” Yuu smiled cheerfully to Kouyou’s secretary, hoping that would at least brighten up Chiaki’s day. “You remember my name.”  
   
Chiaki laughed shortly, appreciating Yuu’s friendliness towards her. “I have to. It’s my job as a PA to take note of every client or businessperson that comes in here to meet Kouyou. Besides, everyone knows who you are, especially now that Kouyou has brought you to Yoshizawa’s gala. It’s such a huge thing, annually, that everyone in this company is emailed a newsletter about Kouyou’s appearance at that gala. I’m sure that on your way here, you must have received quite a few stares.”  
   
Yuu nodded his head enthusiastically. Chiaki had nailed it right on the dot! The newsletter explained how everyone in this building knew of him, too.  
   
“I did! And it was so scary…”  
   
“Well, if you’re coming here often, you’re going to have to get used to it,” Chiaki smiled to him, almost teasing. “Speaking of, Kouyou didn’t tell me you would be coming in today.”  
   
“I came here as a surprise,” Yuu cheekily informed. “He doesn’t know I’m here.”  
   
And Yuu  _really_  hoped Kouyou would be thrilled by his appearance.  
   
“Oh, that explains it. He’s currently having a meeting in his office now,” Chiaki said. She looked relieved at the thought of her boss’s mood lightening up once he saw Yuu. “But he has nothing scheduled after that. You might have to sit here for a while until he’s done with the meeting.”  
   
Yuu nodded again. “That’s fine with me! I’ll wait right here.”  
   
Knowing that Kouyou was just right here, separated only by a wall and a door from him, made the raven’s heart trepidate in excitement. He was going to see Kouyou in the flesh again.  _He was going to see Kouyou again._ Yuu was going to see that handsome face, along with his sturdy-built arms, clothed in his usual black business suit, looking perfectly suave and gentlemenly and every bit like the Kouyou Yuu had fallen in love with on their first date.  
   
Kouyou’s eyes would light up once he saw Yuu, Yuu was sure of it. Kouyou would run over to him, and bring him into his arms, and kiss him once more. Kouyou would treat him with kindness, and tenderness, and apologize for having ever wounded Yuu’s feelings. Kouyou would beg for Yuu’s forgiveness and claim he hadn’t been in the right mind when he said those words to him, and he would promise Yuu he wouldn’t ever do that to him again.  
   
And Yuu would take him back in a single heartbeat.  
   
“But really, it’s so nice seeing you, after all this time…” Without warning, the door to Kouyou’s office was suddenly pushing open, and Kouyou’s voice was floating in, sounding warm and genuine, like the Kouyou Yuu had always known.  
   
Yuu turned his head quickly to that direction, hands almost beginning to shudder at the nervousness he felt. He had thought it would still be a while until Kouyou ended his meeting, and hearing Kouyou’s voice again so soon numbed him right to the core. All he could remember was Kouyou’s last words to him in that voice –  _Go home, Yuu_  – and that disappointed look on his face, and Yuu didn’t know what to do if he ever faced that side of Kouyou again.  
   
“ _Oh_ , we really should do this more often! My father talks a lot about you, and he still holds you in high regard. I believe he mentioned he would like to invite you out to lunch one day…”  
   
Yuu went silently still at the sound of those words. Hold on. A woman’s voice? Her… father?  
   
The raven’s stomach flipped in dread as he realized there was only one person that could fit the bill.  
   
~  
   
_Christine_.  
   
What was she doing here? Why was she  _always_ ruining every one of Yuu’s plans? Yuu’s face paled as he tried to reason what business she could have by coming here. Why was she in Kouyou’s office? What had they been  _doing_? Did Kouyou invite her here? Or had she caught wind of the news that they had broken up and was jumping at the opportunity to get back together with Kouyou?  
   
“That sounds great, maybe you could tell him to ring me up later to make an appointment…” Kouyou laughed as he replied Christine, stepping out the door, his face finally coming into Yuu’s view.  
   
Just like Yuu anticipated, Kouyou looked every bit flawless – as he always had been. Handsomely dressed in a tie, looking like the important head of a top business corporation, his smart suit sharp-looking and well-fitted around his broad shoulders.  
   
And Yuu registered with a plummeting heart that there was that sweet smile on Kouyou’s face, the one that Kouyou had always reserved exclusively for Yuu.  
   
Christine followed out of the room after Kouyou, her long dark hair trailing down her back in curls as usual, her small face thickly made up. Christine truly was beautiful. Kouyou definitely had exquisite taste when it came to choosing his dating partners. Dressed in a fitting dress, Yuu found himself admiring Christine’s figure as she trailed behind Kouyou, the smile on her face unwavering as she gazed up longingly to Kouyou.  
   
If Yuu hadn’t known any better, he would have thought they were in love. And they matched, too. They matched, in their looks, in their status, in their wealth. They  _fit_ , like jigsaw puzzles that had been carved out to fit together from the very start. Christine had always looked so perfect, standing by Kouyou’s side, looking like she had  _always_ been born to be there. And Yuu had always known deep down inside he would never be able to live up to any of that.  
   
If Yuu hadn’t known any better, he would even have thought Kouyou loved her again.  
   
But Yuu  _really_  didn’t know any better, did he? He barely knew Kouyou anymore. Who was Yuu to say that Kouyou was still the same person he was two days ago?  
   
And maybe this was why Kouyou hadn’t been texting him anymore. Not a single message, not a single call. Kouyou had no interest in Yuu anymore. Not after Yuu had made that one mistake of keeping his arrangements with the other men a secret. Kouyou simply didn’t want to deal with Yuu anymore. Kouyou didn’t love Yuu anymore. Yuu had ruined it all. Yuu was worthless, now.  
   
_He really doesn’t want me anymore_ , Yuu thought to himself, the sight before him shattering his heart into a million pieces all over again. Yuu had thought he could come here to make things right between him and Kouyou again – but things were falling apart all over again, right in front of him. Kouyou had already moved on to someone else. Kouyou hadn’t  _even_ been thinking of Yuu in Yuu’s absence. Yuu had been the only one tormented and agonized because of him; meanwhile Kouyou hadn’t even bothered to bat an eyelash.  
   
And Yuu had patched his own heart back up with his hopes and dreams… But Kouyou had taken it easily into his hands once more, ripping it into pieces.  
   
_But how could you have forgotten me so easily?_  
   
“Sir, you’ve got a visitor,” Chiaki hastily informed, watching as the raven-haired stared brokenheartedly to the couple standing before him. Chiaki herself was confused by the situation, but didn’t dare question it.  
   
“A visitor?”  
   
It was only then did Kouyou pull his attention away from Christine, turning his head to scan the room, his eyes eventually landing upon Yuu’s small, quivering frame.  
   
Yuu was  _not_ prepared for the cold disdain in Kouyou’s eyes once he took notice of Yuu.  
   
Yuu choked back a sob at his reaction, realizing then and there his appearance was unwelcomed. Kouyou… Kouyou really didn’t want him anymore. Kouyou  _loathed_ to even see him. Kouyou wasn’t running to him to shower him with kisses, nor was he telling Yuu all the things he wanted to hear,  _no_. What happened to the tearful reunion Yuu thought they would have? What happened to the apologies Yuu thought he would hear? What happened to everything Yuu had imagined would be happening, right here, right now?  
   
Hadn’t Kouyou missed him at all? Because Yuu had missed him  _so_  much. Yuu had craved for his every touch, longed for his every kiss. Yuu had spent every waking moment thinking of him. Yuu had turned so  _pathetic_ , all for the man who had stolen his heart.  
   
And that very man stood right in front of him, a stony look on his face, looking as if he hadn’t kissed Yuu’s lips just two days ago.  
   
“Who is he?” Christine chirped then, barely glancing over to Yuu, her eyes focused exclusively on Kouyou.  
   
Yuu had an inkling suspicion that Christine knew  _exactly_ who he was, since she couldn’t have possibly missed seeing him in the news with Kouyou – not when everyone in this goddamn building knew what Yuu’s status was to the CEO.  
   
Christine was simply asking Kouyou this question to draw the words out from Kouyou’s lips, to affirm right to the raven’s face that Yuu indeed meant  _nothing_ to the blond anymore.  
   
So viciously cruel; so thoughtlessly brutal… but Yuu couldn’t even blame the woman if he tried. He would be as hateful in her position, too, if he knew he had a competitor he had to get rid of.  
   
Kouyou took a long pause before he replied Christine – and in those painfully long seconds, Yuu’s hopes had never been raised higher, waiting for Kouyou to tell him that he still loved him, waiting for Kouyou to say that he still thought of Yuu every morning when he woke up. Because that was what Kouyou had admitted to him, before, and Yuu refused to believe Kouyou thought of anything else, now.  
   
_I wake up every morning thinking of you. And I really hope you do, too._  
   
Yuu refused to believe anything.  
   
“I don’t know him,” Kouyou finally said, nonchalantly shrugging right after. “Maybe he’s here for the internship interview.”  
   
Until now.  
   
Tears that Yuu had been so desperately suppressing now ran freely down Yuu’s cheeks. Every word of Kouyou’s sliced Yuu’s heart thinly like a knife, punching Yuu’s gut mercilessly.  
   
Kouyou had made his point clear. He didn’t want to even acknowledge Yuu’s existence in his life anymore.  
   
_How could you do this to me?_ Yuu instantly lowered his head down meekly, clutching the bento close to his chest. He’d almost forgotten the real reason he had come here for, but now that he remembered, his heart tore further apart. Yuu felt dumb, and stupid, and reckless. What did he even think he would accomplish, coming here in the first place? If Yuu had told of his plan to Yutaka, Yutaka would no doubt stop him.  
   
Yutaka would have prevented this second heartbreak.  
   
Yuu had only listened to his heart; his poor, foolish, beaten and battered heart. Fuck, Yutaka was right. Yuu was always so naïve. Did Yuu really think Kouyou would have changed his mind so easily once he saw Yuu again? Did Yuu really believe Kouyou’s love would be strong enough for him to take Yuu back?  
   
Kouyou had changed. Kouyou was  _already_  changed. Because here he stood, no more than a metre away from Yuu, his face unfeeling, his gaze unforgiving. Next to him, Christine’s head was held up high, her lips smug at Kouyou’s reply, her hands on Kouyou’s waist.  
   
Yuu didn’t need to be a genius to know he wasn’t wanted here.  
   
“S…Sorry, got the wrong level,” Yuu muttered, cursing to himself mentally as the words escaped his lips, knowing he was the very definition of  _pitiful_.  
   
Chiaki looked to him sympathetically, watching as Yuu turned on his heels and left hurriedly, speed-walking back to the lift, still hugging the lunch box he had prepared for Kouyou close to him.  
   
Kouyou would never know his intentions for coming today, but it was fine. It didn’t matter. Yuu would throw the food he’d prepared away on his way back home, since Kouyou didn’t need to know; Yuu didn’t need an extra reason Kouyou and Christine could laugh at him for. It was just a silly idea, anyway, that Yuu had thought Kouyou would appreciate. And as Yuu remembered how excited and hopeful he had been the day before, believing that this plan of his would  _actually_ work, Yuu felt his heart sting with pain.  
   
Yuu had believed with his whole heart Kouyou still harboured love for him.  
   
But now he didn’t, anymore. He didn’t believe anymore. Kouyou had successfully destroyed any form of trust Yuu would ever have for him again. And Yuu wouldn’t try again, no. Yuu knew better than to try again for anyone, especially for Kouyou.  
   
Kouyou had made sure of that today.  
   
~  
   
Yuu was so caught up in his consuming humiliation and heartbreak that the moment the lift arrived at Kouyou’s floor, the raven was instantly rushing into it, frantic to get away, not even raising his head to check if there had been anyone leaving it. He collided immediately with a strong chest, sending the raven stumbling back unsteadily.  
   
“Yuu?” Came Akira’s voice, surprised at the sight of the raven at this timing.  
   
He hadn’t expected Yuu to come look for Kouyou so soon. But all his confusion went away when he took a second good look at the raven, and realized with wide eyes that Yuu was currently a crying, trembling mess. His eyes were bloodshot, his black eyeliner smeared with salty tears dripping down his face, his body spasming and jerking with uncontrollable sobs and whimpers. Yuu had never looked  _worse_.  
   
And it didn’t bode well with Akira, at all, whose protective instincts kicking in right away.  
   
“Yuu, what happened? Why are you… Wait, is that lunch that you’ve prepared for Kouyou?” He’d only now paid attention to the box Yuu was clutching onto for dear life.  
   
“ _Please_ , just let me go home,” Yuu pleaded, refusing to answer any of Akira’s questions, holding the bento he’d prepared tighter to himself.  
   
Akira had never seen Yuu so crushed before, not even back at Yoshizawa’s gala, and Akira could guess in that very instant what had happened. He didn’t require any further explanation; he only felt immediate anger swelling up deep inside of him, unable to withstand the thought of Kouyou unleashing his anger to the poor raven. Yuu must have never been confronted with such a sight of Kouyou before, and it must have shocked him – perhaps even tramautizing him.  
   
And Yuu was so young,  _too_ young to be facing such unreasonable wrath from the CEO. Looking at the lunch Yuu was hiding in his arms, Akira knew the raven mustn’t have had any chance to voice out to Kouyou of his intentions of coming here in the first place. Kouyou must have sent the raven away before Yuu could even present the lunch he’d so thoughtfully prepared for him.  
   
Akira frowned, upset at the idea. His mind was quick to formulate a plan, unwilling to allow Yuu’s efforts go to waste like this.  
   
“If you’re not going to give it to him, then at least give it to me,” Akira spoke gently, mindful of the fact that Yuu was particularly fragile in this state. “I wasn’t planning to go out for lunch, anyway. Don’t let the food go to waste, alright?”  
   
Yuu was at first hesitant at the thought of giving Akira something so personally and lovingly crafted for Kouyou, but Yuu realized that if he didn’t, he would be throwing all the food away, anyway. If Kouyou couldn’t appreciate his efforts, then it didn’t matter who the food was given to. Akira could have it if he so wished.  
   
Yuu loosened his grip around the bento and passed it timidly over to the vice-president.  
   
“Please don’t let Kouyou know I prepared this for him,” Yuu whispered meekly, gazing miserably to the lunch box. “He’ll laugh at me.”  
   
Dear god, what  _exactly_  had Kouyou done to him?  
   
Akira stared to Yuu in wonder, never having seen Yuu so frightened of the CEO before. It was such a stark contrast to the Yuu he had recently seen on Saturday, teasing Kouyou and demanding for him to sleep on the couch.  
   
Now Yuu was like a petrified kitten, shaken to bits, his forlon eyes glistening with tears.  
   
“I won’t let him know,” Akira hushed the raven, offering up an assuring smile to him. “Don’t cry anymore, alright? I would love to drive you home, but it’s not a good time right now. But will you text me when you get home? I need to know you’re safe.”  
   
Yuu nodded tiredly, head looking down to his feet. Akira could tell the raven had lost all form of self-confidence; Yuu had been entirely defeated. And this wasn’t the Yuu he had known at all, no. Akira was suddenly so concerned for the raven he wondered if he should ditch his duties and drive him home instead.  
   
“Goodbye, Akira,” was all Yuu whispered, glancing to him one last time, right before he stepped into the lift.  
   
Akira felt a chill run past him. It almost felt like Yuu was saying his final goodbye to him; it almost felt like Yuu no longer thought he would ever be seeing Akira again after this.  
   
And it might be.  
   
That very thought delivered a pang straight to Akira’s heart. Akira made a mental note then to start telling Takanori to keep tabs on Yuu.  
   
“Text me,” Akira urgently yelled to the raven, just as the lift doors pulled to a close.  
   
Kouyou was  _so_ going to get a piece of his mind.  
   
~  
   
Akira wasn’t even surprised to see Christine at the office with Kouyou, knowing that seeing the woman must have contributed a huge part to Yuu’s breakdown. Yuu had reacted badly enough to the sight of Christine at the gala, and Akira was certain that seeing Christine now, especially right after Yuu and Kouyou had just broken up, must have hit a sensitive spot in Yuu.  
   
After sending angry glares to Christine, openly showing his displeasure at her presence, Christine got the hint and took her leave, but not before bading a flirty goodbye to Kouyou.  
   
Akira hastened to pull Kouyou back into his office right after, slamming the door right behind him as he did so. Kouyou had been slowly growing irked at how rude Akira was acting, but he hadn’t bothered to call Akira out for it, considering he suspected Akira was about to confront him for something else.  
   
“I saw Yuu crying, leaving your office,” Akira started, and Kouyou’s face grew even more grim at the mention of the raven. He had seen it coming. “Have you lost your mind?! Wasn’t he the person of your dreams? The raven-haired beauty you wanted to spend the rest of your life with? Where has the Kouyou that was in love with Yuu gone to? What  _exactly_ did you do to hurt him?!”  
   
Kouyou’s handsome face only darkened further, his eyes turning away. He leaned against his office desk, folding his arms defensively to himself. “It’s none of your business, Akira.”  
   
“Not  _my_  business?!” Akira didn’t hesitate to raise his voice then, snapping at the blond. “Oh,  _okay_! So you’re just going to play this off as none of my business! When you’ve been talking to me about Yuu for  _weeks_! What the hell is Christine even doing here?! Don’t you know how upset Yuu gets about her?!”  
   
Kouyou gritted his teeth, disliking the tone Akira was using with him, snarling resentfully to the vice-president. “Why are you even telling me what to do,  _Akira_? Why, are you in love with Yuu himself? Has Yuu gotten you wrapped around his fingers, too? Are you secretly fucking him on the side?”  
   
Akira was taken aback by Kouyou’s allegations, having never been so offensively disrespected by the blond before. If Kouyou was already saying these kinds of things to him, his long-time best friend, Akira couldn’t even imagine what Kouyou had been saying to Yuu himself.  
   
_Oh,_ the poor, poor raven…  
   
“You think he’s cheating on you,” Akira swallowed down hard as he spoke, taking care not to yell at Kouyou this time. He realized the issue Kouyou was so worried on hand, now. “That’s what you think, don’t you? That’s why you’re reacting so badly about this. You can’t take the thought of Yuu belonging to someone else.”  
   
Kouyou snorted, correcting him instantly.  
   
“I don’t think. I _know_. He’s cheating on me.”  
   
Akira frowned, impossible to evencomprehend such an idea. Yuu? Cheating on Kouyou? It was unfathomable. He had seen the way Yuu looked at Kouyou; had heard the way Yuu talked about him. Yuu wouldn’t dare to hurt Kouyou on purpose this way. Besides…  
   
“Kouyou, you spend every second of your day texting him. And if you’re not texting, you’re with him. Do you  _seriously_  think Yuu has the time to cheat on you?”  
   
Kouyou went silent for a minute, sinking his head as he contemplated through Akira’s words, looking as though he were struggling to believe them. Akira watched as Kouyou’s firm, unfaltering gaze slowly melted, giving way to the unmistakable sadness that lay in his eyes.  
   
Kouyou would never reveal this part of him to Yuu; but Akira wished so badly Kouyou would.  
   
“I couldn’t believe it myself, too,” Kouyou murmured in reply, his voice turning raspy. “But Akira, I can’t take the thought of him loving someone else, I really can’t. I can’t forgive something like that. So don’t… don’t push me, alright?”  
   
Akira could see that Kouyou was  _so_  hurt, himself.  
   
Akira sighed. He didn’t know what was going on between Yuu and Kouyou, but he  _already_  believed it was a misunderstanding. Then again, Kouyou had always been so dramatic. And with Yuu, the blond’s emotions were always a thousand times more intensified. Kouyou always felt too much for the raven, and Akira had long known it would be his downfall someday.  
   
Perhaps it would be better if Akira helped by intervening a little.  
  
“Kouyou… Look, I’m not sure what’s going on, and I’m in no place to tell you what to do. But I really, really want you to know this. Yuu called me yesterday, and he asked for my help.”  
   
Kouyou drew in a sharp breath at the sound of Akira’s words, his eyes genuinely shocked at the thought of Yuu doing that for him.  
   
Akira continued, pleased with Kouyou’s reaction. “Yuu said he wanted to do something to make you happy again, so you could see that his feelings were sincere for you. He said you were mad at him, and he wanted to make things right. He missed you and he wanted you back again. And god, Kouyou, you should have heard how hopeful, how excited he was, when he told me about what he wanted to do for you. Yuu truly believed in you. Yuu really thought it would work. He was even ashamed to ask me for my help, saying that he wanted to prepare lunch for you, but he couldn’t even come up with any idea of what food you liked.”  
   
Kouyou’s shoulders fell. “He felt bad… about that? It’s not even his fault, I don’t… I don’t even really particularly favor any food.”  
   
“But you do like Mentaiko,” Akira pointed out, to which Kouyou just gave a short nod. “And I told him that it wasn’t his fault – you’re not the type of person to care about such things, after all. But Yuu really cares for you, Kouyou. More than you think you do. Maybe even as much as you. Yuu came here today, to make things right.”  
   
Kouyou’s eyes flew to a close, refusing to acknowledge he was in the wrong. Kouyou didn’t want to think he might have just broken Yuu’s heart. He  _couldn’t_.  
   
“I wasn’t ready to see him so soon, Akira. He broke my heart.”  
   
Akira brought a hand to his forehead, in disbelief of what he was hearing. “And you just broke a twenty-one year old’s. For god’s sake, Kouyou, you’re thirty-five. Yuu’s so young. Didn’t you remember what it was like to have your first heartbreak at twenty-one? I don’t know what you said to him, but you’ve broken him, Kouyou. I’ve seen him, and he’s broken, now. And  _god_ , I don’t know if you can get him back. I really don’t.”  
   
The vice-president then lowered the bento he had in his hands to Kouyou’s desk, placing it right next to the blond. Kouyou had seen Yuu carrying it earlier, but it hadn’t crossed his mind that it was for him. But after seeing Akira carry it into this room to confront him, Kouyou had grown curious as to what it was, and it was with a stricken heart that the blond realized it might just have been the lunch Akira said Yuu had prepared for him.  
   
“Yuu was so excited to give this to you, Kouyou,” Akira frowned, glancing to the wrapped bento. “Kouyou… Won’t you at least eat it for him? Even if you no longer want to see him. Even if you can’t bear the thought of him, anymore. This meal was made specially for you with his whole heart. You can’t just let it go to waste. Yuu really thought you would like it.”  
   
Kouyou looked to it regretfully with a heavy heart, all words stuck in his hoarse throat.  
   
_He made it for me._  
   
“I’ll go, now,” Akira said, knowing he had said his piece. Kouyou was  _bound_ to feel remorse for what he had done to Yuu for sure. “I’ll let you enjoy your lunch in peace.”  
   
And he left the blond in the room, staring to the lunch box, his mind running through all the things he’d done to Yuu, over and over again.  
   
Kouyou ended up eating every last bit of that bento, his hands shaking with every bite, his heart lurching with every taste of Yuu's painstaking efforts, warmly running right down his tight throat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have spent 28 chapters building their relationship up.
> 
> I spent the 3 subsequent chapters building it right back down. :p
> 
> luvvv to read your thoughts on this though. see you guys soon <3


	32. Chapter 32

**_Takanori:_** _yuu, are you alright? akira told me to check up on you. i’m worried :(_  
   
**_Akira:_** _Are you home yet? Please let me know you’re fine._  
   
Yuu gazed to his phone in a fit of tears, finding no strength to reply to any of these messages. It was funny how everyone but Kouyou was so concerned about him now, when Kouyou had been the first person to always be there for him. Now Kouyou was nothing but of the past. Now Kouyou had turned into someone so cold, so unattainable for him. Yuu  _really_  thought Kouyou would stick around. Yuu truly believed this relationship could have lasted. Even if not forever; even if only for a few years. And if they ever did split, it would be on amicable terms – not a break-up as messy as this. Yuu never thought someone who could care so much for him could turn his back so quickly on him like how Kouyou did. Yuu never thought Kouyou would turn out like this.  
   
Yuu was thankful for Akira’s concern, though. Akira had never abandoned him or turned on Yuu out of spite, just because the older man wanted to remain loyal to his blond best friend. Akira was always looking out for the raven when Kouyou wasn’t able to do so, and making sure Yuu was safe and all right. Yuu had no doubt Takanori would be in good hands with Akira; maybe they’d even be able to have the perfect, long-lasting relationship Yuu never got a chance to have with Kouyou.  
   
_Kouyou_. Yuu’s heart squeezed painfully at the reminder of the blond. How was Yuu going to get over the blond? Would he _even_  be able to? Sure, the older man’s actions in the office had successfully killed off Yuu’s hopes of ever getting back together with him – and Yuu wasn’t sure if he wanted to, anymore, even if Kouyou asked him, after receiving such brutal treatment from the blond – but Yuu still had an aching hole in his heart, torn personally out by Kouyou’s bare hands. Yuu had given him  _everything_ ; Yuu had given him the entirety of his heart, his soul, and his body. And now Kouyou had tossed him aside without a single care. How was Yuu supposed to live the rest of his life knowing he had been used like this and thrown away?  
   
Yuu was tired. Yuu was exhausted, now. He was tired from keeping secrets from the blond, tired from his heartbreak, tired from  _trying_ to prove his love for Kouyou. Tired of having let Kouyou into his life like this, only to see him step out of it without even a second thought.  
   
But as tired as he was, the tears still wouldn’t stop running. And long even after he’d returned home, back into the warm arms of his brunet room mate, Yuu still found himself hiccupping with sobs, wishing it were Kouyou’s strong arms to be around him instead.  
   
_What happened?_ Yutaka had asked, the minute he’d come home from class and noticed Yuu, all curled up against the sofa, hugging his knees lonesomely to himself.  
   
_I went to find Kouyou_ , Yuu had choked out, his throat closed up, and just one quick look at Yuu’s crying face answered all of Yutaka’s questions immediately.  
   
Yutaka never left his side that night – not even for a single minute.  
   
~  
   
It was a long week for the both of them.  
   
Yuu lost interest in everything else. It had taken him such a long time to come out of his shell, and now that he had, he felt as if he had been left out in the open; vulnerable and sucked dry. The raven-haired stayed in bed everyday, his body leaning against the wall, his duvets wrapped all around his small frame. Yuu really did try to bring himself to go out, and he had been tempted to, especially when Takanori was inviting him out every single day through texts, hoping a date with him could lighten Yuu’s mood. But the raven never found the will in him to leave his room, neither did he have much of an appetite, nor did he find enthusiasm in doing anything else anymore.  
   
Yutaka was the only one who could reach out to him, now. Yutaka was always a diligent student, and he’d never missed a class before, but seeing Yuu in this state made the brunet drop everything he had, simply for the sole purpose of accompanying him. Yutaka set everything aside just to care for the raven, afraid that if he left Yuu to his own devices, Yuu would self-destruct.  
   
Yutaka had never seen Yuu so despondent before, so faithless and resigned to what life would bring him, and he was frightened Yuu wouldn’t be able to return to the old, chirpy side of him that Yutaka had so hopelessly fallen in love with. Yuu was always so playful, so flirtatious, so perky. Now all of that was gone to dust, and Yuu’s eyes lost the brightness they once held.  
   
Yuu also wouldn’t talk much anymore; only shook his head or nodded in response. But Yutaka took that as a good sign – at least the raven was still responding to him, and not completely ignoring him. Yutaka made sure to come into Yuu’s room everyday to bring him breakfast, lunch and dinner, since he knew Yuu would refuse to eat otherwise; and in between he’d put on a movie for them to watch so Yuu could be distracted, even if only for a little while.  
   
When Yuu’s face looked too weary to do anything, Yutaka sat himself next to Yuu on bed and lent the raven a shoulder to lean on, hushing him to sleep. Sometimes Yutaka would mindlessly chatter on about things, just to take things off Yuu’s mind, and even though Yuu barely answered – only giving soft ‘ _mmm_ ’s as acknowledgement he was listening – Yutaka felt contented enough knowing that Yuu reciprocrated Yutaka’s attempts in taking care of him.  
   
Yuu was extremely fragile now, Yutaka could tell. Every little thing could set him off and the raven could potentially end up breaking down again, and Yutaka was doing his best to prevent that from happening. It was amusing how Yuu had always been the one to take care of Yutaka and feed him his regular meals, and now Yutaka was doing exactly the same. There was also some sort of satisfaction in taking care of someone, even more so for someone you loved with your whole heart, and Yutaka relished in that feeling.  
   
Strangely enough, he had never felt closer to Yuu, taking care of him like this; and though Yutaka never wished to take advantage of Yuu in any way in Yuu’s current vulnerable state, Yutaka couldn’t deny the happiness he felt whenever Yuu reached for him or longed for his touch. He knew the last thing Yuu wanted was to be alone right now, and Yutaka was just so grateful he could be the person Yuu needed at this point in time.  
   
For the first time ever, Yutaka had become someone Yuu was voluntarily choosing. And that was enough for the brunet… Yutaka couldn’t ask for anything more.  
   
Yuu didn’t bother narrating to Yutaka the dreams the raven still had of Kouyou every night.  
   
~  
   
On Saturday, Yuu had gotten so used to Yutaka’s daily company that he had been expecting Yutaka’s presence next to him when he woke up. The brunet would usually be attempting to wake Yuu up by now, tempting Yuu with promises of his favourite pancakes for breakfast already waiting for him in the kitchen.  
   
But instead, the raven was awakened by the sound of Yutaka’s exasperated yelling coming all the way from the corridor, and Yuu was immediately worried, wondering if Yutaka had met into any trouble. The raven pulled himself to his feet and noiselessly ran to open his door, wanting to get a peek in on the situation.  
   
Yutaka was standing only a distance away, holding a phone to his ear, his face undoubtedly vexed with annoyance. Yuu watched on curiously as Yutaka argued with the person on the phone, his feet pacing back and forth anxiously as he spoke.  
   
“I already told you, I’m  _busy_! Won’t you just listen to me? University is more demanding than you think,” Yutaka asserted, looking increasingly irritated by the second. “No, I won’t go on Sunday! I can’t!”  
   
Yuu was confused by the agitated display. What was going on? Why was Yutaka so adamant on not going? What  _thing_ did Yutaka not want to go to? Yuu debated on making his presence known, unsure if he should intrude, but he was wide awake already anyway, and if Yutaka was upset, Yuu wanted to at least be there for him.  
   
“G…Go where?” Yuu voiced out, albeit timidly, wide-eyed at Yutaka’s outrage.  
   
Yutaka stopped in his footsteps when he became aware Yuu was awake and listening in to the conversation. Horrified he’d woken Yuu up this way, Yutaka apologetically covered his phone’s speaker and turned to the raven, mouthing to him in a whisper.  
   
“It’s my mother,” Yutaka sighed quietly, explaining. “My family is throwing a fancy dinner tomorrow to commemorate something. I won’t go, though, so don’t worry. I won’t leave you alone.”  
   
_Oh._ That explained things now. Yuu’s heart softened at the thought of Yutaka going to such lengths to ensure Yuu wouldn’t coop up to himself at home. Yutaka really did care so much for him.  
   
But Yuu didn’t like the idea of Yutaka missing out on any important family event  _just_ to take care of Yuu – Yuu couldn’t live with himself knowing Yutaka was really casting everything aside just for him. Yutaka was already doing so much, and Yuu never liked putting people on the spot or inconveniencing people’s schedules because of him. Yuu felt useless enough as a person, and he didn’t want to further trouble his best friend.  
   
“You should go,” Yuu encouraged, nodding insistently to the brunet. “You shouldn’t miss out on things like these.”  
   
Yutaka looked reluctant to do so. “No, it’s fine. I’ll stay with you.”  
   
Yuu’s lips curled up unconsciously into a small, grateful smile at his reply, knowing Yutaka was always obstinate when it came to things he cared about. Yutaka  _really_  prioritized Yuu over anything else.  
   
Truth to be told, Yuu didn’t fancy the thought of being left alone for long, knowing the only thing that had been keeping him together so far was because of Yutaka’s company. And if Yutaka decided to leave him alone for the day to attend his family’s dinner, the raven’s mind would definitely be at risk of wandering back to thoughts of Kouyou once more, and Yuu was afraid of what would happen then.  
   
But since it was only a family dinner… Yuu contemplated the thought of possibly joining in.  
   
“W…What about if I go with you?” Yuu asked, hesitantly, the words leaving his mouth faster than he could think. “We’ve been staying in the whole week, after all…”  
   
Yutaka was shocked by the suggestion, but excited by the offer, nonetheless.

“Really?! I was thinking of asking you along too, at first, but… but you were in such a bad state, so I thought you might prefer staying at home…”  
   
It pained Yuu to admit this, but he was also becoming conscious of the fact that what he’d been doing so far had been extremely unhealthy. He felt bad he had even dragged Yutaka in this, too. Yuu still wasn’t so comfortable with going out and pretending he was okay, but if this was a family event that mattered something to Yutaka and his family, Yuu didn’t want to have Yutaka miss it because of him. Besides, it might actually do him some good to hang out with other people. Yutaka’s family had always been nothing but welcoming to him, and Yuu knew they were genuinely nice people that Yuu wouldn’t mind spending a day with.  
   
“If your mum is okay with me coming along, that is,” Yuu said, biting his lip nervously. “If it’s strictly a family event, I wouldn’t want to intrude.”  
   
“Oh, it’s not. My mother would  _love_  to have you over! They’re kinda hosting this big dinner event at a hotel,” Yutaka elaborated, face wide in a zealous grin. “I haven’t told you this, but my family has been in talks to open up their own chain of hospitals for some time now, and they finally found investors to do so. The dinner will be commemorating the opening of our hospitals, and most probably a ton of their business associates will come, too. I hope you’re okay with that.”  
   
_Okay_  – Yuu had totally not been expecting that. He had thought it would be a normal family dinner at Yutaka’s house, and the idea of going to something akin to another gala event made Yuu’s stomach churn in dread. Gala events only reminded him of Kouyou, and Christine, and Kouyou… and  _Christine._  Yuu’s heart ached as he recounted the sore memory of seeing Kouyou and Christine intimately standing next to each other.  
   
But… maybe going with Yutaka wouldn’t be so bad. Yutaka didn’t have a Christine Yuu had to worry about, and Yutaka wasn’t a decade older than Yuu either, unlike how Kouyou was. Yutaka and Yuu were both university students who understood each other better than anyone else, and if Yuu ever did feel uncomfortable about anything, Yutaka would understand his reasonings perfectly. Yutaka’s family was also very accommodating, and Yuu couldn’t see himself feeling too out-of-place at this dinner event, unlike how he had felt at Yoshizawa’s celebrity-filled gala.  
   
Perhaps Yuu might even enjoy himself.  
   
“I’ll go with you,” Yuu affirmed to the brunet, more certain of his decision now, his lips in a soft smile. “I think it’d be fun.”  
   
Yutaka was thrilled by the news, practically jumping up with a pumped fist. “I’ll tell mother immediately! Wait, hold on, she might have hung up on me by now. Hello? Mother? Are you still there…”  
   
Yuu giggled to himself as Yutaka clutched the phone up to his ear once more, urgently delivering the news of his attendance, along with Yuu’s, to his mother. It was adorable how small things like these – Yuu agreeing to go with Yutaka to something – made Yutaka so happy. His childlike excitement was infecting Yuu, too. Yutaka really was so easy to please.  
   
Yuu wrapped his arms around himself, leaning against the wall by his door, warmly smiling back to Yutaka as he met the brunet’s eager smile.  
   
~  
   
Yuu knew that if a formal dinner was taking place, there was probably going to be a dress code set in place, too. Yuu had little formal wear, and the only suitable outfit that came to mind was the white tuxedo that Kouyou had gifted him for the gala, but Yuu didn’t  _really_  want to wear it out – not when it was given by someone who had crushed his heart so thoughtlessly like this. Yuu would rather not acknowledge Kouyou’s gifts to him anymore, and he made a quick mental note to himself to throw all of them out eventually.  
   
Yuu wasn’t ready to throw any of them out just as of yet, but Yuu knew the day would come soon. And he was mentally preparing his heart for such a day; because when it came, Yuu knew it meant he would be successfully destroying any evidence left of their relationship. It meant he would finally be letting go of any physical memory of that sick bastard.  
   
Yuu couldn’t wait.  
   
Yutaka, sensing Yuu was worried about finding the right clothes to wear for the dinner, rushed to assure Yuu there wasn’t a strict dress code.  
   
“Just turn up in your usual dressing, it’ll be fine,” Yutaka said to the raven. “You don’t have to wear a tux or anything.”  
   
Yuu frowned at the thought of him turning up in his casual shirts and tight jeans. Was that even appropriate formal wear? Especially if there were going to be a ton of industry professionals turning up in tuxedos and whatnot; Yuu didn’t want it to look as if he was disrespecting Yutaka’s family.  
   
“What are  _you_  wearing?” Yuu asked stubbornly.  
   
Yutaka sighed, knowing what Yuu was getting at. “I’m obliged as a son of the Tanabe family to wear a tux to this event. It’s a big occasion for them, after all.”  
   
Yuu sighed. “Then I can’t possibly turn up in a shirt and jeans, can I?”  
   
“Yes you can,” Yutaka answered without a pause. “My family is hosting the event, so we have a duty to look important, I guess. I’m not very comfortable with the idea of it either, but it’s just something I have to do. But you don’t have to worry – you’re coming along as my friend.”  
   
Yuu was only half convinced. “Okay, fine. But I’m not turning up in just a shirt and jeans. I’ll try to find something decent in my wardrobe.”  
   
Yutaka chuckled at how much the raven was worrying over such a trivial matter, but noticed with satisfaction that it was doing a great job in distracting Yuu’s mind off more solemn matters. Ever since Yutaka had informed Yuu about the dinner, Yuu had been engrossed in thoughts of how he could prepare for it, and all the despair on his face had faded away. Yutaka was starting to think this might be a good thing – taking Yuu out – and he hoped he could continue to do so after the dinner, if it proved to be something that could help take Yuu’s mind off unwanted things easier. Unwanted things such as Kouyou.  
   
“You’ll look good either way, anyway,” Yutaka informed adoringly to the raven, grinning hopelessly to him. “You’re always so dazzling in your own right. You don’t have to worry about anything.”  
   
Yuu was surprised by the unexpected compliment, and turned his head away shyly, folding his arms awkwardly to himself in a bid to hide his embarrassment.  
   
Yutaka had always been careful with his words around the raven, especially ever since the both of them became aware of Yutaka’s feelings for Yuu, and Yutaka would never want to cross any line or make Yuu uncomfortable with anything he said; but oddly –  _oddly_ enough, Yutaka’s compliment to him was beginning to make Yuu feel good inside.  
   
If Yuu was still with Kouyou, perhaps he would have ignored Yutaka’s little remark, and perhaps he wouldn’t have felt anything about it at all. But Yuu had just gotten dumped, and after witnessing Kouyou move on so quickly from him back to Christine, Yuu had been feeling disheartened the entire past week, wondering if he had lost his appeal, or  _whatever_ he had that had attracted Kouyou to him in the first place.  
   
Christine was so much prettier than Yuu, after all. Christine was so much better when it came to business lingo, and Christine was more maturely dressed, too. Christine was everything Yuu was not, and knowing of her existence had done  _wonders_  for Yuu’s self-esteem. Thinking back on it now, being with Kouyou had always led Yuu to question himself, and whether he was good enough for the blond. Yuu always felt like he didn’t belong in any of the luxurious places Kouyou brought him to, and Yuu never felt like he could converse properly with any of the people Kouyou brought him to meet.  
   
But Yuu never questioned himself once when he was with Yutaka.  _Sure_ , when Yutaka had brought Yuu out to meet his friends for the first time, there had been tension when his friends assumed Yuu and Yutaka were a blossoming couple already. But at least all of them were in Yuu’s age range, and they weren’t hanging out at some five-star hotel that cost them thousands of dollars to stay per night. No, they hung out at the movies, and ate cheap dinner, and they did  _normal_ things like carpooling.  
   
Yuu never ever felt like he had to pretend to be someone else when he was with Yutaka – and not only friends-wise, but also partially because Yutaka knew him inside out, already. The brunet knew all of Yuu’s habits, knew of his closed-off personality, knew how Yuu looked like without his immaculate eyeliner and fancy clothes, knew what food Yuu liked and what Yuu didn’t. And Yuu knew the exact same for Yutaka, too. Yuu knew  _close_ to everything about Yutaka.  
   
Meanwhile, Yuu didn’t even know a single food item that Kouyou liked.  
   
And so, knowing that even though some top billion-dollar making CEO out there had just dumped Yuu’s ass, knowing that despite all of that Yutaka still thought Yuu to be the most attractive being on earth; it was a piece of knowledge that comforted Yuu immensely, and it was something that cheered Yuu up and made him feel like he was something of worth again.  
   
It made Yuu feel good about himself. And that was a feat in itself, especially when Yuu had been having such a shit week so far.  
   
“You really feel that way?” Yuu asked in a soft voice, eyes anxiously looking down to his hands. “You really think I look good in everything?”  
   
Yutaka was bewildered by how bashful Yuu suddenly seemed, seeing as Yuu had never reacted so shyly to him before – but Yutaka gobbled the cute sight up with a delighted laugh, nodding his head feverishly.  
   
“You could turn up tomorrow in slacks and slippers and you’d still be more stunning than everyone else in the room,” Yutaka teased, only earning himself more blushes from the raven. “I’m not worried about what you’ll wear, Yuu. I know it won’t matter, either way. Mother was so excited to hear that you’d be coming over, and she said it'd been too long since she had last seen you. Mother really likes you.”  
   
Yuu’s heart flitted around in happiness at Yutaka’s words. It was nice to know that at the end of the day, there were people who appreciated his company and would want him around no matter what. Yutaka’s family had always been so nice to him, and Yuu didn’t doubt he’d have a blast tomorrow.  
   
It was so nice to know that no matter what happened, Yuu would always have Yutaka, too.  
   
“Thank you,” Yuu smiled gratefully then. He brought Yutaka into a close embrace, feeling as if a hug was long overdue, and he fluttered his eyes shut as he did so, hoping Yutaka could hear all the silent  _thank you_ s coming from within his heart.  
   
_Thank you for always treating me so kindly. Thank you for never abandoning me. Thank you for never letting down the trust I have in you. Thank you for always making me feel safe._  
   
Yutaka’s own heart palpitated non-stop against his chest, the brunet’s face in a dazed smile as Yuu clutched him tightly in their embrace.  
   
“What for?” Yutaka asked, raising his hand up to softly caress at Yuu’s hair, still a little uncertain if such a gesture would be appreciated by the raven.  
   
But not only did Yuu _not_ push him away – he leaned in closer to Yutaka’s touch and nuzzled his head cutely against his hand.  
   
Yuu had never felt more soft and precious in his arms.  
   
Yutaka’s heart raced faster at the thought that things could be starting to change.  _Things were already changing, now._  Yuu was readily accepting his advances, blushing at the sweet things he said, and wasn’t getting into an argument with him over Yutaka’s feelings for him.  
   
Yuu even seemed flattered when Yutaka freely voiced out his thoughts on Yuu, spoiling the raven with sweet talk, just like how a lover normally would.  
   
Yuu’s reactions to everything Yutaka was doing to him now were beyond adorable, and Yutaka wondered if this was how Yuu usually acted to all of his sugar daddies and lovers. It was no wonder that so many men liked him then, when Yuu had this magnetic attraction, almost like a pull, that made you want to take care of him and pamper him constantly, if only to witness that sweet, shy smile on his face.  
   
Yuu was  _so_  heavenly.  
   
“This whole week,” Yuu suddenly murmured, replying Yutaka’s question from before. “You’ve been taking care of me. You didn’t need to. I know I haven’t been in the mood to say much, but – but you didn’t need to drop everything you had just to accompany me in my downward spiral. I should have listened to you when you told me to think it over before I looked for  _him_ again. But I didn’t. And he broke my heart. And… And it was all my fault. I’m sorry…”  
   
Yutaka immediately shook his head, disapproving of how Yuu was pinning the blame entirely on himself. In Yutaka’s eyes, Takashima Kouyou was completely to blame. Takashima Kouyou had abused the very trust Yuu had for him, and Takashima Kouyou, who should have been the more mature one in their relationship, should have understood he was only dealing with a twenty-one year old, someone who was prone to make more mistakes at his age. And that was if Yuu had even made  _any_ mistake. Takashima Kouyou should have been more understanding of Yuu’s insecurities, of Yuu’s fears, of Yuu’s _everything_. Takashima Kouyou should have noticed that despite whatever Yuu did, Yuu was doing whatever he thought was the best for their relationship. Yuu never wanted to hurt anyone.  
   
But Takashima Kouyou had hurt Yuu ruthlessly in return.  
   
“Yuu, listen to me. It’s not your fault. It never is. I don’t blame you for ever thinking there was hope in getting Kouyou back, okay? It’s normal. You love him, and he loved you, and you sincerely believed if you tried hard enough, he would come back. And maybe he would have, in another universe. Maybe things would have been all right again.  
   
But he didn’t, Yuu. He had more than enough chances, and he missed them all. And now you see him for who he really is. And I can’t stop you if you ever want to try again, but I really,  _really_ hope you won’t allow yourself to get hurt by him, anymore. Okay? Just for your sake?”  
   
Yutaka always spoke to him so gently, as if he really were holding porcelain in his hands. Yuu had noticed it since so long ago, but now the raven truly felt it, all from Yutaka’s words, from Yutaka’s tone of voice, from Yutaka’s concerned gaze. Yutaka always handled him with such care, never allowing even the slightest chance of breaking the raven. Yutaka would never hurt Yuu in a million years. Yutaka couldn’t ever bear to do so.  
   
And he had been right here all along.  
   
“Am I always perfect in your eyes?” Yuu asked, with a gentle laugh, though strangely there was a tingling sensation in his eyes.  
   
The raven had a sudden overwhelming urge to cry.  
   
“Yes,” Yutaka said, promptly, without hesitating at all.  
   
Yuu held on to Yutaka then, basking in the hug. And god,  _god_ , knowing that Yutaka cherished him more than life made Yuu feel so,  _so_ safe and secure in his arms. This feeling was addictive, and so,  _so_ lethal. Yuu knew if he continued holding on to Yutaka like this, it might begin to replace every memory of every single embrace he ever had with Kouyou. It might begin to replace how well protected Yuu always felt by Kouyou. It might begin to replace Kouyou’s musky odor, it might even begin to replace every feeling Yuu had ever held for Kouyou.  
   
The scary thing was – Yuu didn’t want to let go. He didn’t want to let go of holding Yutaka like this, he didn’t want to let go savouring the knowledge Yutaka loved him more than anything else. He didn’t want to let go knowing that he might just have a second chance in finding solace in someone else, and he didn’t want to let go knowing he still meant something to someone, that he could still be prized so highly like this, that he could still be  _wanted_.  
   
Then maybe he could have a chance in erasing every inch of Kouyou from his heart. Then maybe he could potentially forget the lingering of Kouyou’s touch against his skin.  
   
See, Kouyou?  
   
_I can forget about you too_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hihi!!! so I've been spoiling you guys with 2 updates at one go and this was only 1 update so I hope no one is disappointed...
> 
> I wasn't planning to update this weekend either, but I know you guys have been waiting ;;;; so I've been pretty busy & stressed out lately but I managed to squeeze this update in ehehehe. so, not sure how, but the kaoi ship sailed even before I realized it rofl
> 
> YAY!!! FAMILY EVENT!!! here's a reminder that yutaka comes from a family of doctors and he's also pretty rich too. and they're opening up their own chain of hospitals :OOO YUU GET THAT $$$. okay, maybe not. yep what am I saying... yep this a/n definitely speaks volumes about me. XD
> 
> comments are so wonderful to read as usual, tell me what you think about this new advancement and change in yuu's heart *A* pls always remember that you are usually reading in yuu's POV and after all he's been through, he feels very indignant towards kouyou & underappreciated. yutaka is finally showing him a way out and that yuu can be spoiled and pampered the way he wants to be, too, under yutaka's care. yutaka can be everything yuu dreamed of. yutaka can live up to his expectations too. yutaka could be the ooone~


	33. Chapter 33

Yuu stood before the mirror at the light of dusk, brushing through his dark hair slowly, noting to himself how long it was growing to be, now. Yuu usually kept his hair shoulder-length, but now they had grown at least an inch past his collarbones. The past month had been too hectic for him to remember to get his hair trimmed – especially not when Kouyou was always running his fingers through Yuu’s hair, his lips always softly pressed against those raven hair strands.  
   
Then again, maybe there was a part of Yuu that began to  _want_ to keep it long for Kouyou, too. Maybe Yuu had seen Christine, and how attractive she was in all of her long, dark hair, and maybe Yuu had wanted to emulate it just a  _little_ bit.  
   
Yuu would never admit it to Kouyou, of course, if the older man ever asked. But Yuu had grown insecure after he’d caught a glimpse of his ex-lover, and he wanted to keep a tighter, more secure hold over Kouyou after knowing what he was up against.  
   
But it was all for naught, now. Everything was for nothing. And it was with a soft sigh that Yuu grasped his hair in a fistful and stared straight to the mirror, scrutinizing how he looked with longer hair.  
   
He did look more feminine like this. He did look more fragile; more weak. But maybe this weakness had always been inside him; maybe it was the reason older men always scrambled to spoil him. Maybe it was the reason why Yutaka always had this overwhelming urge to protect him.  
   
Yuu just wanted to be loved, was that so wrong? He liked being adored, he liked being someone’s everything. But at the same time, Yuu always wanted to return those feelings, too. Yuu could never give his heart freely to someone; not until he was assured he was already in possession of that person’s heart himself. Yuu couldn’t take that sort of risk – loving someone without even knowing of the slightest possibility that the man could return his love back.  
   
But Yuu somehow knew when it came to Kouyou, things had never gone the way he wanted. Yuu always thought he was the reluctant one, the one that  _had_  to give in to Kouyou’s feelings – but Yuu knew deep down inside that his heart had already belonged to Kouyou since day one. No matter how much Yuu put up a front, no matter how much Yuu denied his feelings to Kouyou; Yuu knew he would have said yes in the end, anyway. He would have said yes to anything Kouyou asked. He would have spent the rest of his life with him.  
   
_But he doesn’t like this worthless pretty looking face anymore_ , Yuu thought, heart falling as he gazed to the mirror.  
   
“Yuu? Our ride will be here any moment now!”  
   
Yutaka’s voice calling for him from outside snapped Yuu quickly out of his daydream.  
   
But it was different now.  _It’s different, because I have him, now,_  Yuu reminded himself, forcing a smile on his face as he looked to the door.  
   
Yuu placed down his brush, patting his hands down his clothes, neatening any possible creases on his shirt. After spending  _hours_ digging into his closet, Yuu was finally able to piece together an outfit he thought looked presentable enough for a grand dinner. He’d paired a dark blue blazer with a matching buttoned-up shirt, complete with slim-fitting black pants.  
   
Yuu smiled briefly at the anticipation in his heart, realizing it mirrored how he felt just before he’d attended the gala with Kouyou. It was better this time, though. Despite knowing that he would be attending an event of similar sorts with Yutaka, Yuu felt  _so_  much more comfortable. Yutaka had even told him it would be fine to turn up in his usual shirt and jeans (which was something Yuu wasn’t going to do, of course); but Yuu felt more relieved knowing that he didn’t have to constantly be on guard today, he felt more relieved knowing that he didn’t have to be on his best behavior. Yuu was always afraid of portraying himself in a bad light when he was by Kouyou’s side, afraid that it would reflect badly on Kouyou’s image, too.  
   
But Yuu had nothing to be worried about when he was with Yutaka. Yuu didn’t have any expectations to live up to, not when Yutaka already knew exactly who he was.  
   
“Yuuuu? Are you ready? We should be going down now!”  
   
“Coming!” Yuu hurriedly answered, turning around to pull his bedroom door open.  
   
Drawing in a deep breath, Yuu put on his biggest smile, preparing himself for today’s little date with Yutaka.  
   
And if he could just ignore that small twinge in his heart, it was almost as if Kouyou didn’t exist, already.  
   
~  
   
Yutaka cleaned up  _really_ well.  
   
He always fit into the whole ‘broke and sleep-deprived’ college student look, since all the brunet did was coop himself at home and keep to his books, and it was why Yuu so often forgot about Yutaka’s affluent background and well-to-do upbringing. But when Yutaka put on a sharp-looking suit, bothered to actually comb through his hair and had put some concealer on to mask his dark eyerings, it was so easy to tell this man was well-bred, intelligent and  _rich_.  
   
Yuu would have swooned at the sight of the brunet if he could. Yutaka’s black tuxedo was well fitted on him, bold across the shoulders, gentle lines around the waist, exuding out pure class. And as the brunet managed an apprehensive smile on his face upon meeting the raven’s eyes, Yuu broke into a gentle laugh, knowing Yutaka must be feeling awkward, dressed so formally – something he usually never did.  
   
“I didn’t know you had something like this hiding in your wardrobe,” Yuu teased, watching as Yutaka sheepishly laughed to himself. “You look good.  _Really_  good!”  
   
Yutaka was never the type to be too confident of himself, so the raven thought he would do well with a few compliments. Yutaka was someone who never paid much attention to his physical appearance, despite his good looks, and it was amusing how unsure he seemed at times, as if oblivious to his charm. He was only twenty-two, afterall; he had plenty of time left to nurture that part of him. Yuu knew that Yutaka only needed a couple more years to  _really_  grow into himself, and perhaps by the time he graduated and became a doctor, he would have turned into that confident, mesmerizing man he had potential to be. Perhaps maybe turn into a man with the calibre of the many other older sugar daddies Yuu had past arrangements with.  
   
Perhaps maybe even turn into someone like Kouyou.  
   
“I keep this suit in my wardrobe for emergencies like this,” Yutaka mumbled out as a response, embarrassed, though he was smiling to himself at Yuu’s words anyway. “I’m happy you think it fits me.”  
   
The sight of Yutaka, so shy after hearing Yuu’s compliments, was _so_  endearing. The smile on Yuu’s own face widened further, and he sauntered over to the brunet, closing in on the distance between them. Yuu’s hand then leaned up and settled gently down against the side of Yutaka’s jaw, surprising Yutaka immediately. But the brunet didn’t withdraw from his touch; his eyes only gazed down questioningly into Yuu’s, wondering what Yuu was trying to convey with this.  
   
Yuu was getting too close to him, too  _close_ for his own good. And Yutaka didn’t know what would happen if this continued; if Yuu kept coming too close to comfort like this, and reciprocated all of Yutaka’s own touches to him. The lines were blurring too fast and Yutaka wasn’t even sure if Yuu knew what he was doing, or if this was all genuine, when Yuu had so recently broken up with Kouyou and was nursing a broken heart.  
   
But if Yuu wanted Yutaka to help him pick up all the pieces and mend his heart once more, Yutaka wouldn’t leave him in the lurch.  
   
“Stop being so unsure about yourself,” Yuu gave a sweet smile to the brunet, cocking his head teasingly to the side as he spoke. Yutaka slightly trembled underneath Yuu’s touch. “You have all the reasons in the world not to. You’re so smart, so kind, and it’s undeniable how easy on the eyes you are. Men like you are so rare nowadays. I really hope you’ll come to see your worth someday.”  
   
Upon hearing his words, Yutaka’s hand flew to Yuu’s wrist suddenly, fastening a grip on the raven tightly. Yuu widened his eyes, having never expected such a reaction.  
   
“So, do you see my worth, now?” Yutaka asked, direct and straightforward, a glimmer of hope in his sincere-looking eyes. “Do you see how much happier I could make you?”  
   
Yuu’s voice was caught in his throat. He hadn’t anticipated Yutaka would steer their conversation to this direction, since all Yuu had wanted to do was simply offer some encouragement to the brunet about the way he looked; but he could feel just how much Yutaka meant it when he said these things, he really did.  
   
And Yuu knew Yutaka wasn’t lying, as well, for he could imagine a bright future ahead of them if they chose to be together. They were already well established in a living situation with each other, and if they ever decided to spend the rest of their life together, they needn’t worry about not being able to adjust to each other’s living habits. They already were.  
   
They weren’t the type to have petty squabbles over money or food or who did the dishes or who didn’t, either. And if one of them were to be feeling low, the other would automatically know what to do to cheer the other up. Yuu could see Yutaka’s point – they knew each other right down to the core.  
   
They had absolutely no reason not to be together at all.  
   
“I think about it, you know,” Yutaka began quietly, eyes never tearing away from Yuu’s face. “I think about waking up to mornings with you by my side, and I think about having breakfast with you after that. I think about you kissing me before I go to work – just like how you did for Kouyou – and how you’d smile and reluctantly bid me goodbye. I think about how I would be able to come home to you everyday and be the luckiest man alive. I think about a future with you. And I know you might not feel the same – about spending the rest of your life with me – but I just thought I should let you know, how real this already seems. How real all of my dreams could be. Because I would never treat you like how Takashima Kouyou did for you. I would  _never_  lash out at you like that. I just really needed you to know that.”  
   
Yuu was stunned to silence.  
   
Yutaka was apologetic when he noticed his words were the cause of the sudden tension between them.  
   
“I’m sorry, was I too forward?” The brunet asked, anxious at the thought of having pressurized the raven with his words. He eased his grip off the raven’s wrist, cursing himself when he realized what he’d done, not having realized he had been tightly grasping Yuu all this while in his subconscious state. His eyes glanced to the side regretfully.  
   
“I shouldn’t have those things. I’m sorry – I just… You were saying all those sweet things and you were so close to me, and…”  
   
Yuu shook his head quickly, realizing his silence might be frightening the brunet.  
   
“It’s okay,” Yuu hastily assured, though his hand shook slightly as he pulled it back from Yutaka’s jaw. There was a distressed look on Yutaka’s face, and Yuu felt a pang to his heart when it occurred to him that this wasn’t the first time Yutaka was acting so hesitant, so doubtful of himself. Come to think of it, Yuu was mainly the reason for his insecurities, wasn’t he? Yuu had successfully reduced Yutaka to this state, with all his regular talk of how wealthy his sugar daddies were, and later on – how handsome and attractive Kouyou was, and how all of these were leading Yuu to have impossibly high expectations for the men he chose to date, and how all of these could mean that just because Yutaka didn’t fall into any of those categories, Yutaka wouldn’t ever have a chance with him.  
   
Yutaka hadn’t always been this way. Yuu  _made_ him this way.  
   
And only Yuu could fix that bruised self-esteem by convincing Yutaka he was perfect, in his own way, too.  
   
“Our ride will be here any minute now,” Yutaka murmured, keeping his eyes away from the raven still, too ashamed to face Yuu. “We should get going.”  
   
Yuu’s heart ached as he watched Yutaka pick up speed and stride over to the apartment door, pulling it open. The raven then impulsively ran over to envelop Yutaka into a hug from behind, with Yuu burying his head against Yutaka’s back.  
   
Yutaka was so caught off-guard he trembled slightly upon contact.  
   
“Yutaka,” Yuu called out, squeezing Yutaka tighter in his grasp. “I’m not mad. I’m excited to be spending today with you.”  
   
Yutaka couldn’t resist the small smile spreading upon his lips when he heard that.  
   
“Let’s go and have fun, okay?” Yuu asked softly, snuggling his head meekly against Yutaka’s back.  
   
Yutaka would have melted to bits if he could.  
   
“Okay,” Yutaka replied, wondering if he really stood a chance after all these time.  
   
~  
   
Yuu had always known Yutaka was wealthy, coming from a family of doctors and all that, but he hadn’t ever known just how  _much_. Although Yutaka’s financial status had easily landed him an apartment that had been conveniently located near his university, his parents were careful not to spoil their child too much. Yutaka still took the public transport to get to school, having not been gifted a fancy car or anything of the like. Yutaka still ate pizza and take-out food, and dressed in clothes that never cost him anything above fifty bucks. Having met Yutaka’s parents once, Yuu also knew they were kind, humble people, who must have brought Yutaka up to be the conscientious, frugal person he was today.  
   
But because Yuu was so rarely exposed to the privileged side of Yutaka’s life, it had never crossed his mind just how affluent Yutaka truly was. And when a black Rolls Royce pulled up to them as they waited beneath their block of apartments, Yuu was amazed to see a chauffeur getting out of the car, hurrying to open the doors for them, calling after Yutaka respectfully as his young master.  
   
“Wow,” Yuu whispered, tugging at Yutaka’s sleeve, having never expected such a luxurious ride to the dinner.  
   
“This dinner’s pretty important for my parents,” Yutaka mumbled, trying to play it off, though pride evidently swelled up inside of him when he saw how impressed Yuu was.  
   
“Not bad,” Yuu teased, and Yutaka widened his smile. “Let’s get in!”  
   
They spent most of the car ride in silence. Yuu kept his eyes on the window; a distant look in his eyes, whilst Yutaka watched him from the side, wondering uneasily what exactly was running through Yuu’s mind. Even Yutaka, who could proudly claim he knew Yuu inside out, couldn’t bring himself to understand Yuu sometimes.  
   
Because Yuu was acting so confusing to him lately, and Yutaka wasn’t sure where they currently stood in terms of their friendship…  _and_  relationship. Yutaka only wanted to be there for Yuu when he needed him – that was all. Yutaka wasn’t asking for anything else. He knew he didn’t even  _deserve_ to ask for anything from the raven, he wasn’t in any right to.  
   
But Yutaka still occasionally thought about living out a future with Yuu, and it was no denying that the more the brunet tried to suppress these hidden desires of his, the worse it got. Yutaka had tried desperately several times to kill these feelings he held for the raven, especially after Yuu had made it clear to him that he didn’t see Yutaka in the same light Yutaka did for him; but now that Yuu had been abandoned by Kouyou, now that Yuu was starting to realize the man he had initially chose hadn’t worked out for him at all, now that Yuu was realizing that Yutaka had been right by his side all these while…  
   
Yutaka didn’t want to get his hopes up, but it was  _so_ hard, when Yuu was recently embracing him and touching him and teasing him with such affection that it made Yutaka so,  _so_ happy. Yutaka wasn’t delusional, however. He knew realistically that all of these might have been brought on by Yuu’s feelings of vulnerability, of just having been dumped by Takashima Kouyou.  
   
But Yutaka was beginning to think he could use this to his advantage. If Yuu was craving for attention and affection, Yutaka could give it to him. And in the process of doing so, Yutaka could prove to Yuu that he was more than capable enough of handling Yuu’s heart in his hands. Yutaka would treat him right. Yutaka would do all he could to show Yuu that no one would treat him better than he did.  
   
Yuu was just so beautiful. Even now, simply sitting by the window like this, the raven’s obscure-looking eyes gazing out at the view. Yutaka wanted nothing more than to kiss those eyes and lips, and to hear Yuu’s laughter ringing in his ears. Yutaka wanted nothing more than to be the one to make Yuu happy.  
   
And he knew it would take time, but Yutaka could wait. He’d been waiting all these time, after all.  
   
When they were nearing their destination, Yuu’s eyes brightened up when he began noticing they’d driven to a hotel by the beach, a piece of detail that Yutaka had neglected to inform Yuu about. The raven-haired was quickly turning his head excitedly to face Yutaka, questioning him about their whereabouts.  
   
“I didn’t know we were going to be near the sea,” Yuu gushed, and Yutaka smiled fondly at the raven’s childlike enthusiasm. “I thought we’d be driving down to the town centre, or something.”  
   
“My parents love the food here,” Yutaka readily explained. “And the atmosphere here is really relaxed and therapeutic. Since they lead such busy lives, they prefer to get away from all the city buzz sometimes.”  
   
“I totally understand!” Yuu exclaimed in a shrill, only catching himself a second after. “Oops… Too much? I’m just excited because it’s been such a long time since I’ve been to the beach!”  
   
“Well, we’ll be having dinner in a ballroom inside of the hotel, but maybe we can sneak off to the beach later,” Yutaka chuckled, shaking his head at how thrilled Yuu looked. The raven was  _so_ cute.  
   
“I’d love that,” Yuu giggled, meeting Yutaka’s eyes with a warm smile, looking genuinely the happiest he’d ever looked in this whole week so far.  
   
It made Yutaka’s heart race so fast the man heard his heartbeat pounding in his very ears.  
   
“I can’t wait to see your parents again,” Yuu continued, keeping his eyes locked with Yutaka’s, never pulling away. “I have to congratulate them about the opening of their hospitals.”  
   
“They’re excited to meet you, too,” Yutaka grinned, his heart rate still not showing any signs of slowing down. “Mother is always asking when I can bring you over for lunch again. She was ecstatic to hear I’d be taking you today.”  
   
Yuu laughed, a sly look on his face. “Your parents really like me that much?”  
   
Yutaka didn’t miss a beat. “Of course they do. I always talk about you when they call.” And then Yutaka realized what he’d just revealed, and he wasn’t completely sure if Yuu was okay with it; and he was immediately raising a hand to his head, running his hand through his hair, flustered. “Um…”  
   
“Don’t do that, you’ll ruin your hair,” Yuu chided, scooting his body over, reaching his fingers over to brush them through Yutaka’s hair, styling the brunet’s hair strands back into shape. Yutaka could barely breathe as Yuu’s body closed in onto him, easing the distance between them; and the brunet watched with a gulp as Yuu worked on fixing his hair, his brows furrowed in utmost concentration as he did so.  
   
“Hmph. I bet your parents know I always take care of you, whenever you’re being a useless human being,” Yuu chastised, moments after he’d shaped Yutaka’s hair in such a way that left him feeling satisfied. “I don’t know how you’ll live without me.”  
   
“You’re right,” Yutaka breathed, seeing his chance. “I can’t live without you.”  
   
Yutaka didn’t care anymore at this point. He wanted to let Yuu know he still harboured strong feelings for the raven, and he needed to let Yuu know he was always waiting for simply one chance, to show just how capable he was when it came to taking care of the raven’s heart.  
   
Surprisingly – or unsurprisingly – Yuu didn’t flinch at Yutaka’s words.  
   
“You don’t know how to flirt at all,” Yuu sighed softly, a coy smile on his face. “But I appreciate the effort.”  
   
_He liked it_ , Yutaka registered in his mind, shocked.  
   
“I don’t know how Takashima Kouyou sweet talks to you,” Yutaka admitted. “But I mean it when I say these things. I hope you know that.”  
   
Yuu’s smile turned faint at the mention of his ex-lover. “You don’t have to be Kouyou, Yutaka. In fact… it’d be best if you weren’t.”  
   
Yutaka saw that as a sign that Yuu was already starting to move on from the blond CEO.  
   
“I’ll make you so much happier, I promise,” Yutaka whispered, a hopeful look in his eyes.  
   
Yuu quickly sensed the conversation was being steered again to a direction he wasn’t ready to venture into as of yet, and he moved to change the topic of discussion swiftly.  
   
“We’re reaching,” Yuu pointed out, a perky smile on his face, head raising up to look out the window.  
   
Yutaka watched the raven with a yearning heart, wondering if the raven had  _even_  a single clue of what he was doing to Yutaka with his every move at all.  
   
~  
   
“Yuu! It’s such a delight to see you again!”  
   
Yutaka’s mother was welcoming as always. Dressed elegantly in a long, flowy and shimmering turquoise-colored dress, the older woman received Yuu with her arms wide open, pulling Yuu into a cosy hug, bombarding him relentlessly with questions about himself, as well as her son’s welfare.  
   
“It’s so nice to see you again, Mrs Tanabe,” Yuu politely greeted, though he laughed as his lean frame was crushed within her arms, anyway. Yutaka looked on by the side fondfully, liking just how well the raven and his mother got on with each other.  
   
It had only been a few seconds since they’d arrived to the dinner party, but Yutaka’s mother had spotted them the minute they passed through the doors, and immediately excused herself from her company, making her way over furiously to greet them.  
   
As for Yuu, it was hard not to recognize Yutaka’s mother too, for Yutaka and his mother were carbon copies of each other. The both of them shared the same kind-hearted countenance on their faces, and adorable dimples whenever they smiled. Yuu always felt at home when he was with either of them; they possessed naturally comforting auras, and being around them always made Yuu feel safe and sound.  
   
“I’m so glad you managed to convince Yutaka to attend this dinner with us,” Yutaka’s mother sighed to Yuu, lamenting. “He’s always cancelling appointments with his father and I because he’s too cooped up with schoolwork – or so he says – but it’s been such an awfully long time since I’ve seen him!”  
   
Yutaka had on an indignant expression on his face, clearly restraining himself from refuting all of his mother’s claims.  
   
“But it’s such an important day for us today! We’re finally advancing on a project that Yutaka’s father and I have been working on for a long time,” Yutaka’s mother continued, her face glowing with satisfaction as she spoke. “Yutaka must have mentioned to you about it.”  
   
“He did!” Yuu answered cheerfully. “Congratulations! I’m really happy for your family. You guys must be making history in the Tanabe family for this. Plus, Yutaka’s always studying so hard. I have no doubts that he’d be a great doctor in time to come.”  
   
“You’re not just saying that because Yutaka told you to do so, are you?” The brunet’s mother joked, finally turning to look at her son. “Yutaka! Come here and give your mother a hug.”  
   
Yuu had to stifle a laugh as Yutaka dragged his feet across the floor and made his way into his mother’s arms, heaving a low sigh as his mother squeezed him into a tight hug.  
   
“Have you been a good boy?” His mother asked, clucking her tongue as she pulled back to survey Yutaka’s face. “Look at those eyebags! You’re not sleeping right again. And you’re growing so thin! I’d hate to think of what would happen if Yuu wasn’t around to keep you in shape.”  
   
“It’s because Yutaka really studies so hard,” Yuu teased, deciding to put in a good word or two for his best friend. “He’s definitely doing his best to make the Tanabe family proud.”  
   
Yutaka’s mother smiled at Yuu’s words, marvelling at the nice things being said about her son.  
   
“Yutaka is my only child after all,” she sighed, dotingly patting against Yutaka’s head with a hand. “I get worried when I can’t see him for extended periods of time. But he is such a handsome and capable son after all, right? Don’t you think so, Yuu?”  
   
Yutaka avoided Yuu’s gaze, embarrassed. “Um… Mother, please don’t ask such questions to Yuu.”  
   
“Of course,” Yuu answered the brunet’s mother, smiling encouragingly towards Yutaka. “Yutaka really is great. I’ve not been feeling so well the past week, but Yutaka was there for me the whole time. I don’t know what I would have done without him.”  
   
Yutaka scratched at his head shyly, the smile he had in the car before slowly returning to his lips.  
   
“You know I couldn’t leave you alone,” Yutaka murmured, eyes looking to his feet.  
   
“ _Oh_ , you two take such good care of each other!” The brunet’s mother chirped gleefully. “It really makes one wonder…”  
   
Whatever else she had planned to say was quickly cut short by the entrance of Yutaka’s father, and what appeared to be an important-looking business investor standing by his side.  
   
“Yutaka, Yuu,” Yutaka’s father was far more reserved in his greetings, nodding his head as he acknowledged their presences. Donning a smart tuxedo, he looked every bit the professional doctor Yuu had always known him as, and Yuu had always guessed it was him that Yutaka probably attained his serious and workaholic personality traits from.  
   
“Meet Yasuda, one of the investors of our project,” Yutaka’s father introduced, gesturing respectfully to the man standing next to him. Yasuda, a man who looked to be in his forties to fifties, bowed his head slightly as recognition. Yutaka and his mother returned the bow, and once Yuu saw that he quickly followed suit.  
   
“This is my son, Yutaka,” The brunet’s father continued, signaling for Yutaka to step forward. Then the older man turned to Yuu, a genial smile on his face as he looked upon the raven-haired student. “And this would be Yuu, his partner.”  
   
_Wait. What?_  
   
Yutaka’s father motioned for Yuu to step up as well, and the raven would have done so without hesitation – had he not been frozen in shock, having just been introduced as Yutaka’s…  _partner_.  
   
_He thinks Yutaka and I are a couple_ , Yuu registered, eyes widening at the knowledge. How did he possibly derive to that conclusion? Yutaka had never introduced Yuu to his father as anything more than friend.  
   
Well, it wasn’t like Yuu minded  _that_ much. Yuu had perfected the role of playing someone’s other half for so long, it wouldn’t hurt if Yutaka needed Yuu to pretend he was his boyfriend for the day. Yutaka had taken such meticulous care of the raven the past week afterall; perhaps this could act as some sort of payback for the brunet. It was always so hard to think up of ways to show Yutaka just how much Yuu appreciated him staying by his side, and perhaps making Yutaka’s parents happy by pretending to be Yutaka’s date could serve as a form of appreciation for the brunet.  
   
Meanwhile, on Yutaka’s end, watching Yuu suddenly go silent at his father’s words was a disconcerting sight. Yutaka could discern Yuu was being placed in an uncomfortable position once more, and he didn’t want to subject Yuu to any future awkward situations; so he hurried to correct his father’s mistake.  
   
“Um… Father, Yuu’s just a fr–”  
   
“Nice to meet you, Yasuda,” Yuu cut in unexpectedly, realizing what Yutaka was planning on doing – and preventing him from doing so. Yutaka turned to him with a questioning look, clearly confused by Yuu’s adamance on going with the flow.  
   
The raven walked up to Yutaka’s side and clutched gently at the brunet’s arm, leaning his head demurely against Yutaka’s shoulder as he introduced himself in a sweet tone of voice:  
   
“I’m Yuu.”


	34. Chapter 34

_Holy fuck._  
  
Yutaka’s heart picked up its speed, drumming madly in his chest. What was Yuu  _doing_? Why was the raven not denying his father’s claims? Why wasn’t Yuu allowing him to clear the false air? What did this mean for the both of them?  
  
Yutaka’s mother was surprised by the news as well, and her eyes were instantly gleaming towards the couple standing before her.  _I knew it_ , she muttered triumphantly under her breath, an act that Yutaka sighed upon seeing.  
  
After exchanging a few more formalities, Yutaka’s father excused himself to entertain the other investors, and Yutaka was left alone with his mother and Yuu once again. Yutaka wanted to frantically ask Yuu what he meant with his words, but he knew he wouldn’t have a chance to – not until his mother had finished hounding them with her questions.  
  
Thankfully for him though, a couple more guests arrived through the door rather timely at this moment, and his mother was forced to head over to welcome them and escort them to their seats. Yutaka breathed a sigh of relief as he watched his mother walk away, though the sparkle in her eyes as she glanced to him indicated that the conversation about his relationship with Yuu wasn’t over between them yet.  
  
“Your father seems to think we’re together,” Yuu mentioned, rather innocently, bringing Yutaka’s attention back to him.  
  
Yutaka turned to him rather apprehensively.  _Now_ he could begin asking Yuu all his questions. “He does. What did you do that for? You know I can clear up the misunderstanding he has about us.”  
  
Yuu’s eyes dilated slightly, surprised by Yutaka’s reaction. The brunet didn’t look pleased – which was  _not_ the kind of response Yuu had thought he would receive.  
  
“Oh…” The raven’s voice oozed out disappointment. “I thought you’d be happy.”  
  
Yutaka’s heart softened immediately at the knowledge. Was that it? Had Yuu been thinking of making Yutaka happy by going along with his father’s introduction of him as his partner?  
  
“You did that because you thought it would make me happy?”  
  
Yuu chewed his lip hesitantly, averting his gaze, wondering if he had done something he shouldn’t have. “It’s because… you’ve been so nice to me the past week… I just thought it wouldn’t hurt to make your parents happy even if for just a bit.”  
  
Yutaka understood Yuu’s intentions, but he wasn’t sure if his little act had done more good instead of incurring more repercussions for the both of them. He appreciated Yuu, he really did, but sometimes Yuu did things without much thought behind them at all – and Yutaka knew this one act would be a lie Yutaka couldn’t keep up with for long in front of his parents.  
  
“You don’t have to lie about being in a relationship with me just because I’ve been ‘nice’ to you, Yuu,” Yutaka snapped, exasperated. Yuu winced at the tone Yutaka was using with him, since it was so rare Yutaka even raised his voice at him.  
  
“S-Sorry–”  
  
“And no, doing things like these will  _not_ make me happy. In fact, it  _upsets_ me. Especially when I know you don’t mean it. And my parents will definitely ask us about our relationship later, Yuu, and we’ll have no idea how to answer any of that. So unless you’re actually thinking of getting into a relationship with me, don’t make it appear as if we’re in one.  _Okay_?”  
  
Yutaka’s words to him were like a huge slap in the raven’s face. The flash of hurt, so crystal clear in Yuu’s eyes, stung Yutaka’s heart.  
  
It was the harshest Yutaka had been to Yuu in a while. Considering Kouyou had treated Yuu viciously just earlier this week, Yutaka had been careful when it came to speaking to the raven, ensuring that he always spoke in gentle tones and used the most accommodating of words. But Yuu had been acting  _too_  confusing of late, and it was growing  _too_  frustrating for Yutaka, who only wanted a straight answer from the raven.  
  
Because Yutaka didn’t mind being someone Yuu could fall back on anytime, really. Yutaka didn’t mind being any of it. What he  _did_ mind, though, was Yuu taking pity on his feelings and doing things like these in a bid to repay Yutaka’s ‘niceness’. Because Yutaka had never been thinking of any sort of payment from the start; he just loved Yuu. And he wanted Yuu to get better, and he wanted Yuu to be happy.  
  
And he didn’t appreciate being treated like a charity case by the person he loved most like this.  
  
At the same time, the brutal reality of what Yuu had done begun to sink down into the raven’s mind after listening to Yutaka’s words.  _Fuck_. Had he unintentionally done something that hurt someone he cared for,  _again_?  
  
“I’m sorry I always ruin things,” Yuu whispered out in a strangled voice, turning his head away, overwhelming feelings of dejectment slowly bubbling up inside his chest.  
  
Maybe Yuu would never be enough for anyone at all.  
  
Yutaka was so afraid the raven would suffer another breakdown here, in public, when Yutaka had wanted to take him out to take his mind off Kouyou in the first place. But Yutaka wasn’t taking Yuu into his arms just yet; he didn’t want Yuu to think that everything he did was excusable simply because he’d had a bad week so far.  
  
“You’re not ruining things,” Yutaka said with a frown. “Yuu, I know the past week has been extremely hard on you. And I really understand that, and I know everything has been confusing for you. But you’ve been… you’ve been acting strange, Yuu. You’ve been returning my touches, but then in the next moment you’re pulling away from me, and then in the next – you’re back in my arms once more. And I really am confused, myself, on what you want from me. And I... I don’t want you to do things you don’t want to, just to make me happy.”  
  
Yuu wrapped his arms around himself, desperately seeking comfort, still not raising his eyes up to meet Yutaka’s ones. Yutaka sighed, wondering if he should try a softer approach with the raven to help him understand where Yutaka was coming from. It wasn’t the raven’s fault, it really wasn’t. Yuu had been feeling vulnerable this whole week, and Yutaka wouldn’t dare pin the blame on him when Yuu had only been trying to do something nice – in his own way – for the brunet.  
  
But though Yutaka understood what Yuu had been trying to do, he also needed Yuu to understand the consequences of such an action.  
  
“My parents like you,” Yutaka murmured, his voice gentler this time, hoping bringing his parents’ feelings in the matter would help Yuu see the bigger picture. “Just don’t give them false hope, okay?”  
  
Yuu still didn’t respond, and he kept his head down. Yutaka begun to fear then that he had truly destroyed what little confidence Yuu had been amassing over the past week in his time with the brunet. Yutaka had spent so much time trying to prove he was different from Takashima Kouyou, and he didn’t want Yuu to think Yutaka was another Kouyou who couldn’t understand Yuu’s sentiments, too.  
  
The sight of Yuu looking so disheartened by the brunet’s words left Yutaka no choice; he took several steps forward and pulled Yuu into a soft embrace, his lips hesitantly delivering a kiss gently against the side of Yuu’s hair.  
  
Yutaka didn’t know what came over him to do such a thing, but whenever Yuu was looking particularly weak and defenceless, Yutaka always had an overwhelming urge to bestow a comforting kiss upon the raven to cheer him up. Yutaka had never found a time where it was appropriate to do so, however.  
  
But this time it strangely was.  
  
Yuu made no move to protest. His body quivered underneath Yutaka’s kiss, and it didn’t take long for the raven to spread his own arms and reciprocate Yuu’s hug, holding the brunet close to him. The raven nuzzled his head up adorably against Yutaka’s cheek, hoping Yutaka could accept his silent apology through this small motion.  
  
Yutaka had no heart to be mad at Yuu at all.  
  
“You just make me feel okay again,” Yuu finally found the courage to respond, speaking quietly, his eyes fluttering shut. “You make me feel at home. And I don’t want you to be mad at me. I just wanted to do something for you in return but I did something wrong instead. And I’ve been fucking up so much recently and I feel like that’s all I do now. But I never want to hurt anyone. I just want the people I love to be happy.”  
  
A small smile flitted across Yutaka’s face. He knew Yuu never truly wanted to hurt anyone; it was the raven’s own naivety that sometimes contributed to his downfall.  
  
“You’re so silly,” Yutaka sighed, his fingers stroking lightly through Yuu’s hair. “Yuu… I’m not mad at you. It’s impossible to. But I don’t want to get my hopes up when it comes to you, either. And I know you probably can’t decide on your feelings now, not when you’re still feeling so confused – but you don’t have to. We can take it slow. I’ll take care of you. You don’t have to think about anything else… Not until you feel like you’re ready to.”  
  
It was beyond soothing for Yuu’s heart to hear Yutaka speaking to him so carefully, so gently, so thoughtfully like this. Yutaka never pressured Yuu into making any decisions; Yutaka would never do anything of the sort.  
  
_So why can’t I just choose him already?_  
  
“Lovebirds, the both of you have to return your seats,” Yutaka’s mother called from across the room suddenly, jolting the raven and the brunet up from their locked trance. They shyly drew back from their hug, trying to brush it off. “The dinner’s starting!”  
  
Yuu waited for Yutaka to lead him, preparing to follow in his footsteps, but he was pleasantly surprised when Yutaka’s hand slipped down to take the raven’s hand into his instead, tugging him along to their dinner table.  
  
And as Yutaka gazed to Yuu, the corners of the brunet’s mouth tugged up into a reassuring smile, and the light that fell against his face highlighted the cute dimple by the side of his cheek. The despair Yuu had felt in his heart previously dissolved as quickly as it had come, and Yuu found himself smiling softly in return, clutching Yutaka’s hand closely in his.  
  
Yuu wondered if his true prince charming had been Yutaka all along, instead.  
  
~  
  
“I would like to thank all of you today for coming to today’s dinner…” Yutaka’s mother slowly began her speech, standing upon the high stage, in her glorious, sweeping turquoise-colored gown. She truly embodied elegance, Yuu thought, admiring her mermaid-shaped silhouette.  
  
Not only was she beautiful, she was extremely intelligent, and a caring mother as well. Despite being a top-notch doctor herself, Yutaka had mentioned to Yuu that she always made sure to be present during his childhood, and constantly filled in for his father’s duties when he was too busy to be there.  
  
“Today, we’re celebrating the commencement of the Tanabe project. To open up a chain of hospitals of our very own is something my husband and I have been working on for a while now, and it’s a project we hold dear to us. Having been in this industry for more than 25 years, we have always believed in the advancement of medicine, and how it can help effectively save lives. Whether you are a doctor or a nurse, or currently studying to be one; whether you specialize in research, or administer medicine hands-on; and whether you are  _even_ a part of this industry or just someone who believes in bettering humanity, I know everyone gathered here today believes in the importance of medical science, and how essential it is in our daily lives…”  
  
The entire room was riveted to her, captivated by her speech. Yuu turned to Yutaka who was seated next to him, observing him with a small smile, seeing the distinctive pride on Yutaka’s face as he watched his mother deliver her piece on stage.  
  
“She has always been such a good orator,” Yutaka commented, once he noticed Yuu’s eyes were on him. “I just hope I can be like her someday.”  
  
Yuu grinned to him, wondering what Yutaka had to worry about. “I’m sure you will be. You’re on your way there, already.”  
  
Yutaka smiled at what he’d heard from Yuu, finally turning his head to face the raven, a determined look in his eye.  
  
“Mother tells me they’re hoping to open the hospitals in two years. They’ve already found the locations, but they have to tear them down and re-build them. With the funding they got from their investors, they’re able to utilize leading technology to get their hospitals built quickly of course, but they still have to source for medical equipment, as well as gather manpower.”  
  
“Oh,” Yuu nodded his head, though in the back of his mind he was puzzled as to why Yutaka was abruptly telling him this. “That’s great. I’m happy for your family.”  
  
Yutaka flashed Yuu an uncertain smile. “My mother has already expressed desire for me to work with them once I graduate. It’s a very exciting notion, to be able to work with my mum and dad. My parents are looking to expand their hospitals all over the country, too, so we can have at least one in every state.”  
  
Yuu grew even more confused – the brunet looked so serious; delivering these information to him, that Yuu wasn’t so sure what Yutaka was trying to make known to him underneath all of this.  
  
“That’s my future,” Yutaka finally concluded. “There’ll be a hospital here too, of course. In this very state. It’s the very first hospital they’re going to build, actually. But if you’re ever tired of living here, we can travel. I’ll have a versatile job. Since my parents are determined to expand their hospitals as much as they can, we can always go anywhere, as long as a branch of the Tanabe Hospitals is nearby. So this way, it won’t be too boring for you.”  
  
_Oh_. Oh. Yuu understood now.  _Yutaka’s thinking about our future,_  Yuu registered, though he felt his gut wrench at the very thought. Yuu never even gave much thought to what would happen in his own coming future, but here Yutaka was, already piecing Yuu into his.  
  
“You don’t have to decide now,” Yutaka reiterated hurriedly his point from before. “But I just wanted to let you know this, first. I have the finances to support you in whatever you want to do in the future, so you won’t have to worry about that when you’re with me. Though, I’ll be a doctor, so I might have long hours, but… I’ll definitely make sure to make time to at least have dinner with you everyday. And I’ll make sure I’ll come home everyday, just like how my mother used to do for me. I know I can do it if I just make time. I won’t abandon you for work or anything like that.”  
  
…Yutaka had planned  _everything_. Yuu was left speechless at the words he’d just heard being uttered from Yutaka’s lips. Yutaka had planned everything; even when there was a possibility all of that could come crashing down on him anytime. Yuu hadn’t even said  _yes_ yet. Yuu hadn’t even given him any of his word.  
  
“I know I’m not Takashima Kouyou, or a CEO or anything like that,” Yutaka smiled hopefully to Yuu. “But I hope what I am will be enough for you. And when I’m older, much older, my parents will pass the hospital on to my charge. So I will definitely be the kind of man you want.”  
  
Yuu felt his heart swell further.  _Oh._ Oh. All of it made sense now. Yutaka had been trying to live up to Yuu’s expectations of a sugar daddy  _this whole time_. How foolish could this man get? Yuu had emphasized to him so many times that Yutaka was perfect in his own right, and that Yuu wasn’t particularly hunting for men of extravagant wealth – it was just the nature of Yuu’s job.  
  
And Yuu had guessed that Yutaka had been affected by all of Yuu’s arrangements, but he hadn’t thought it to reach  _this_ point.  
  
“I already told you, you don’t have to be Takashima Kouyou,” Yuu croaked, swallowing down the lump that had been painfully rising up his throat. “You’re such an idiot, you know that?”  
  
Yutaka’s face looked relieved, looking at how moved Yuu was, and how emotional the raven had become, just by listening to the brunet talk about the future. Yutaka had thought he would have frightened Yuu off by planning so far ahead, and he was almost regretting revealing such an intimate portion of his thoughts to Yuu.  
  
“You only like men like that,” Yutaka murmured, smiling weakly to the teary raven. “So I’ll try my best to be every inch of that.”  
  
Yuu struggled between punching the brunet in the face for his idiocy, or smashing his lips against Yutaka’s to convey to him that he was wrong in his assumption.  
  
But the raven knew he could do neither.  
  
“I don’t only like men like that,” Yuu huffed, sniffling back his tears. “Stop talking about me like I’m such a sucker for money.”  
  
Yutaka chuckled. “You’re not, Yuu. You just have expensive taste.”  
  
_That_ managed to instigate a sore laugh from the raven himself. It was certainly one way to describe Yuu.  
  
“I guess you’re now thankful you’re rich,” Yuu found the heart to joke, though he hoped Yutaka knew he didn’t mean it – not really.  
  
Yutaka simply smirked to him. “Oh, Yuu. You have  _no_ idea.”  
  
~  
  
The dinner was a merry affair. Yuu was seated with Yutaka’s family, along with Yutaka’s extended family members, and the news about Yuu and Yutaka’s relationship spread like wildfire, thanks to Yutaka’s mother herself. Although she was particularly relentless in the way she tried to acquire more details about their relationship, Yutaka shut her down pretty quick, knowing he didn’t want to elaborate on the lie and make it even worse than it was when it wasn’t even the truth. Yutaka hoped deep down inside that it would soon materialize into reality, though. Yutaka secretly hoped Yuu’s willingness to lie might have been due to Yuu’s heart partially giving in to Yutaka, already, and perhaps it meant Yuu only needed a little bit more time to fully accept Yutaka’s feelings for him.  
  
Throughout the whole dinner, Yutaka was the perfect gentlemen when it came to ensuring Yuu ate enough at the table. Other than frequently asking Yuu if he wanted any more servings, Yutaka often asked the raven if it was growing too cold for him, too, and whether Yuu needed to be offered Yutaka’s jacket or not because Yutaka really didn’t mind at all.  
  
Yuu always declined Yutaka politely, but he appreciated how attentive Yutaka was when it came to taking care of him at the dinner table – though it got slightly embarrassing when Yuu started noticing that Yutaka’s relatives kept eyeing the both of them closely with knowing looks. It was odd how everyone around them always seemed to question their intimacy whenever Yuu and Yutaka went out with each other; even if they themselves knew they were only friends. Had they crossed the friendship boundaries long ago? Were they already threading dangerously upon relationship territory now?  
  
The never-ending stares were unsettling. And so when they started putting classical music on in the background, signaling it was time to dance, Yuu was eagerly accepting Yutaka’s invitation when the brunet stood up and offered him a hand, inviting him up to the dance floor. Yuu had spent the entire hour under Yutaka’s family’s scrutiny and any excuse to get away from that would be a blessing at this point.  
  
Yutaka emitted a low chuckle when Yuu released a long sigh of relief once he left the table. The raven was just _so_ impossibly easy to read, and it was one of the reasons Yutaka decided to help Yuu out by bringing him away for a dance.  
  
“Are they bothering you?” Yutaka asked, slowly getting into position for the dance, resting a hand up gently against Yuu’s back. Yuu shook his head, allowing Yutaka to take his hand, before grasping lightly at the side of Yutaka’s raised arm himself.  
  
“No, it’s just intimidating,” Yuu sulked, his feet slowly falling into Yutaka’s pace, following the brunet’s lead as he moved. “Plus, everyone related you is so smart. They’re either studying to be doctors or lawyers, or  _already_ established doctors and lawyers themselves. I feel so dumb.”  
  
Yutaka let out a wry laugh. “I guess my family has always been typical overachievers themselves. But that doesn’t make you any less intelligent. You’re very clever, too.”  
  
Yuu cocked an eyebrow up, refusing to believe what he’d just heard. “Okay, whatever. I’m going to take it you’ve been blinded by my beauty, or something, to  _even_  think that’s true.”  
  
Yutaka grinned, liking how the raven was starting to learn how to compliment himself. “I won’t deny you’re rather stunning, yourself.”  
  
Yuu pouted. “You know, the combination of you acting  _extra_ chivalrous this evening, while being clothed in a sleek-looking tuxedo, is really starting to have an effect on me.”  
  
Yutaka gazed to him suddenly with such interest that it startled the raven, his arm tightening his hold around Yuu as they danced.  
  
It was at that point that Yuu sensed the flipping of a switch inside of Yutaka.  
  
“What kind of effect?” Yutaka questioned, almost challengingly in a deep voice, his hazel eyes boring right into Yuu’s moonlit ones.  
  
Yuu wanted to look away, but he couldn’t. Yutaka suddenly had him beyond captivated with those eyes, and the brunet felt…  _different_. A familiar kind of different, though – one that Yuu was too used to seeing from his other sugar daddies; one that Yuu had been so used to seeing in Takashima Kouyou.  
  
“I’m not used to this side of you, that’s all,” Yuu mumbled out, momentarily disoriented by how dreamy Yutaka was acting.  
  
Oh, this was bad. This was  _bad._ Yuu could barely recognize the man standing before him, and Yuu couldn’t associate him back to the best friend Yuu had always known him to be.  
  
Because the Yutaka he knew always dressed shabbily, always dug his nose in books, always was a little bit jittery; always more nervous, always a little doubtful of himself. He was attractive in his own way, yes, but he was the college friend that you’d prefer to kick back and hang out with,  _not_ the kind of man you’d dream of taking you out for dinner, or spending a pleasurable night with at his place. The Yutaka that Yuu had always known was a caterpillar hiding in its cocoon; he definitely had potential to turn into the man of your dreams, but you needed to wait a while for him to get there.  
  
But now the caterpillar Yuu had always known him to be was slowly breaking out of its sheltered nest. Now Yutaka had a hand against his back, was leading Yuu in a romantic dance, and was swaying the raven to the gentle lull of the classical music playing in the back. Now Yutaka had a charming tuxedo on, and his eyes were twinkling with mischief that Yuu had never even known existed, and he was speaking with such soothing  _intensity_ it had potential to turn Yuu weak-kneed.  
  
Yuu came to a staggering realization that this was the type of man that Yutaka had always been striving to be from the very start.  
  
_For Yuu._  
  
Fuck. Maybe Yutaka was right. Maybe Yuu really did have a type, after all, and it all boiled down to  _this_. A well-groomed man who held power, and possessed the ability to sweet-talk Yuu to bits. Those were  _definitely_ the perfect ingredients to send Yuu’s heart fluttering against his very will.  
  
“You like it,” Yutaka deduced, laughing softly to himself when he noticed Yuu’s peach pink cheeks.  
  
“Like what?” Yuu scoffed, trying to hide his blush.  
  
“You like me. Like this,” Yutaka teased, and Yuu’s face immediately turned white. He had been seen through  _so_ easily.  
  
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Yuu rolled his eyes, though he still couldn’t bring himself to pull his eyes away from the brunet.  
  
“I’m picking up on things you like,” Yutaka said, clucking his tongue, pulling Yuu closer in with his arms. “And I’m beginning to notice that you get shy when I hold you close and stare into your eyes like this.”  
  
Yuu glared up to him hotly, a stubborn look on his face. “ _Anyone_  would get shy if you stare at them so close!”  
  
“Oh,” Yutaka feigned disappointment. “So you’re saying it’s not working? I thought I was doing a pretty good job so far.”  
  
Yuu frowned – since when did Yutaka learn how to be manipulative? “Fine! I’ll give you credit where it’s due. You’re currently scoring an… 8 out of 10.”  
  
Yutaka’s eyes lit up, pleased with Yuu’s answer. “Oh, that’s really not so bad.”  
  
Yuu couldn’t resist a smile at how motivated Yutaka suddenly looked. “I thought the nerd side of you would have wanted a full 10.”  
  
Yutaka chuckled, shaking his head. “I do. But this is the first time I have received an 8. I probably wasn’t even ranking on the scale, before this.”  
  
The smile on Yuu’s face slid off promptly after that. Yutaka really _did_  think so lowly of himself. Yutaka really hadn’t had any confidence in his own abilities to court Yuu  _at all_. Just how much had Yuu been neglecting Yutaka, and brushing off his advances and feeble attempts, in the short two years they’d known each other to turn Yutaka into  _this_? How long had Yutaka been trying, just to get Yuu to consider Yutaka as a  _possible_  love interest?  
  
“I’m sure there are many pretty girls and guys in the university that would love to get together with you,” Yuu reckoned, his voice quieter this time. “You’ve probably surpassed 10 on their scale.”  
  
Yutaka looked to him, amused. “But no one else has surpassed 10 on mine. Only you. And love is supposed to be a mutual thing, is it not?”  
  
Yuu was taken aback by the eloquency of his response.  
  
“You’re really learning,” Yuu laughed, fluttering his long lashes up to Yutaka as he spoke. Yuu didn’t stop to think why he was acting particularly flirtatious. “You’re really learning what kind of sweet talk gets to me.”  
  
Mesmerized by the sight before him, Yutaka had to pause for a second to recollect his thoughts before he responded again.  
  
“I’m… hoping I can get a 10, soon. I’m really hoping you can give me that. Did… Takashima Kouyou ever get a 10 on your scale?”  
  
Yuu’s heart hardened at the mention of his ex-lover. He was having so much fun with Yutaka so far that he hadn’t even stopped to think of Kouyou even once; and being reminded of the man who had violently broken his heart just sent his heart throbbing with dull, familiar pain.  
  
“Don’t mention him again,” Yuu said briskly, impulsively. “There isn’t a Takashima Kouyou in my books anymore.”  
  
But Yuu knew deep down inside Takashima Kouyou never had a scale, because he never needed one.  
  
Kouyou would have surpassed any scale he was placed on.  
  
Yutaka looked overjoyed by the news, however, even more encouraged now that he knew Yuu was clearly moving on from him. “I see. We won’t talk about Kouyou anymore, then. Never.”  
  
_Never_.  
  
Yuu would never speak of him again… Yuu would never see him again.  _Never._ A chapter of his life was closing, now. And Yuu would never re-open the same wounds again.  
  
So why was there still an undescribable, lingering ache in Yuu’s heart as Yutaka affirmed that very fact? Yuu didn’t want to think about it. Yuu  _never_ wanted to think about it.  
  
Because Yuu could still remember the stone-cold look in Kouyou’s eyes as he refused to acknowledge Yuu’s existence, and every single time Yuu remembered those eyes it shattered every inch of his fragile heart.  
  
_Go home, Yuu._  
  
_Well, Kouyou,_ Yuu smiled bitterly to himself.  _I guess I’m going home now_.  
  
And home was where Yutaka existed.  
  
~  
  
Yuu’s phone buzzed against the surface of the dinner table, long forgotten in the midst of the joyous celebration.  
  
_One New Message_  
**_Kouyou:_** _Can we meet?_  
  
...  
  
_One New Message_  
**_Kouyou:_** _I still love you_  
  
But Yutaka had already pulled Yuu out to the beach by then, twirling and dancing under the moonlight with the raven in his grasp.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh my god all the uruaoi fans are going to kill me. oh my god all the kaoi fans are going to be so happy.
> 
> i don't know what i'm doing!!! honestly!!! i really miss writing kouyou but then i write yutaka and he's such an angel but theN KOUYOU'S STILL HURTING BY THE SIDE!!!! SOMEONE SAVE HIM!!!!
> 
> it's so funny, because in the midst of writing these 2 chapters, i came across [this tumblr post](http://sweetlolixo.tumblr.com/post/124382069124/how-to-tell-the-signs-like-you), one of those horoscope things, but this time it had 100% dead accuracy. and god, it suddenly pieced together why i've been writing yuu in SA this way. why he's so reluctant to love and he's so careful and... everything. but read this first, and i'll explain later:
> 
> How to tell the signs like you  
>  **Capricorn:**  
>  _They will be very hot and cold. One day, they can be outrageous and flirty and coy, but you can bet your life that they will go home and overthink it and the next day they will give their utmost effort to avoid you or seem indifferent towards you. **This is because Capricorns have a superiority complex, and sometimes a crush makes them feel weak; they are afraid of getting hurt so they will never act too smitten for too long. This is why most Capricorns will not admit to their feelings until they are secure in the fact that you feel the same way.** A Capricorn will also try to help you and give you advice, not because they think you are wrong or in need of actual help, but because they care about your well being and want you to live the best life you can. They will try to impress you with their unique talents or philosophies. They can be very coy and charming. Intense eye contact (they honestly believe they can seduce you with their eyes). They are chivalrous regardless of gender; they love holding doors for their crush (like literally all of them do this). **Side note: they will never forget a single thing you say or do. Ever.**_
> 
> guys. g _uys_. I'm a capricorn. Aoi (in real life) is a capricorn. I have always related so well to my bias and never faulted him for anything because I've always understood why he's saying and doing the things he is.
> 
> writing Seeking Arrangement has been slightly more personal than my usual fics (although I usually do write with many personal inspirations, but.) I have always tried to make SA's characters more relatable, more... realistic. and I am _so_ forgiving to Yuu, and I thought because he's my character that I came up with, I've always understood why he does things the way he does, and why he feels things the way he does.
> 
> and then I came across that tumblr post and it all started making sense to me. that description of a capricorn is 100% me. and it's a flaw i'm definitely working on, especially with the whole "caring exclusively for someone else makes me feel weak" and so it's something i always try to pull back from-- and then i realized it was yuu, too. it's yuu in SA, and it's definitely one of his personality traits. a flaw, if you will.
> 
> ...i guess the point of me telling you this... is just an explanation as to why yuu always feels the need to be in a superior position when it comes to love. actually........ this whole fun fact seems kind of pointless now. but i hope it's a little trivia you enjoyed :> go read the tumblr post and look for your horoscope! it might actually ring through for you. and if you're a capricorn, tell me if it rings through for you, too. i'm an INFJ myself, so i think that definitely contributes to part of my personality. :)
> 
> (so sorry for the long update, i have been so, so busy. i really do try to update as often as i can, but it is rather time-consuming.)
> 
> see you soon! comments are appreciated as usual <3 and sorry for the long A/N :D  
>  ~~THIS IS STILL AN URUHA/AOI STORY I PROMISE~~


	35. Chapter 35

The low night tides flowed in a gentle sigh, as small waves crashed silently beneath their feet. Their shoes long discarded and their bare feet dirtied with cool sand, a soft laugh slipped out of Yuu as his dance with Yutaka pulled to an abrupt stop – ending with him twirling right into Yutaka’s arms, their fingers clasped together tightly within each other’s hold. The moon glowed dimly from above, its gentle rays falling upon their beaming faces.  
   
Standing here by the beach, so far away and absent from all the buzz and chatter that had been evident in the ballroom, Yuu felt a comforting sense of peace. And coupled with the tender look Yutaka’s eyes were bestowing upon him now, it was too easy to give in, to allow the brunet to enclose the raven’s small frame in his arms, to allow Yutaka to brush through his hair and sigh happily in bliss.  
   
And when Yutaka pulled slightly away, raising a hand to cup at the bottom of Yuu’s jaw, his fingertips caressing past Yuu’s skin with adoration in his eyes; Yuu could already sense what was coming. Yuu  _felt_ it.  
   
Yutaka wanted to kiss him.  
   
There was longing on his face, and his lips trembled as he gazed down to Yuu’s face. And he was leaning in,  _god,_ Yutaka was leaning in so close to him. And Yuu knew that any moment now, his lips would be claimed. Yuu would become his. Yuu could seal the deal; right here, right now. The setting was perfect. Yutaka was perfect. _Everything_  was perfect.  
   
But there emerged the familiar ache in Yuu’s heart as he watched Yutaka’s eyes close shut, his lips parting slightly for a kiss. And Yuu had been staying rooted in his spot all these while, too numb and too stunned to react, unsure if he should so outrightly reject Yutaka’s kiss; but he knew right from the start he wasn’t ready to accept such an invitation. Not now. Not so soon. Not when his heart was still broken and so freshly wounded.  
   
And he wanted desperately to reciprocate; he truly did want to return Yutaka’s feelings and make him happy, too. But Yuu knew he would be lying if he accepted this kiss now. Yuu knew his heart still didn’t solely belong to him. Yuu knew he wasn’t ready.  
   
Yuu felt the initial brush of Yutaka’s lips against his – and then the raven was turning his face to the side abruptly, pulling away fearfully from Yutaka’s touch, leaving the brunet stranded. Yuu chewed his lips to himself, cursing himself mentally when he realized what he’d just done. He daren’t even look back to face the brunet.  
   
Yutaka opened his eyes once more once he felt his lips meet air, and disappointment was clear on his face when he saw that Yuu had evaded his kiss. Yuu folded his arms to himself, fidgeting uncomfortably as he felt Yutaka’s perplexed stare on him. The brunet was  _bound_ to question what just happened.  
   
Fuck, Yuu was so fucked up, emotionally and mentally. He didn’t understand a single ounce of what he wanted all. One minute, he was feeling so safe and secure in Yutaka’s arms, giggling as the brunet led him in a dance under the moonlight. The next minute, he was avoiding Yutaka’s kiss, refusing to even look at him now. Yuu didn’t blame Yutaka for initiating the kiss, though. It had only felt like the most natural course of action; after dancing, after their low-key flirting, after all the discreet smiles and laughter.  
   
Yutaka must have thought Yuu was finally giving in.  
   
Yuu wanted to vocalize an apology, but his voice couldn’t leave his throat. How was he supposed to apologize for turning Yutaka down like this?  
   
Yutaka was the first to break the silence, and he sounded every bit disheartened as Yuu had imagined he would be.  
   
“I’m sorry, I just thought…”  
   
_You just thought I would kiss you back._ Yuu couldn’t even fault Yutaka for thinking so.  
   
“What’s wrong?” Yutaka asked regretfully, a hand hesitantly reaching over to cup at the side of Yuu’s jaw. Worry was apparent in his eyes, visibly concerned at the sight of Yuu’s subdued state.  
   
Yuu fluttered his eyes shut and allowed himself to relax slightly against Yutaka’s hand.  _Still_  biting nervously against his lip, Yuu’s voice quietly left him. “I think I just need some time…”  
   
Yutaka smiled weakly as a response. “Is that it? I’m sorry if it looks as if I’m rushing… into things. That wasn’t my intention at all. I just thought... since we were so happy… Things felt right. So I thought I could… I thought I could sneak a kiss.”  
   
Yuu finally gathered the courage to raise his eyes to meet his, his face apologetic.  
   
“I’m not saying you can’t try again,” Yuu whispered, trying to offer up an encouraging smile. “I’m not saying that at all. It’s just… Now isn’t a good time. But I… I really appreciate you trying for me. It means a lot.”  
   
Yutaka looked more at ease at Yuu’s reply. “I see. I understand, then. Don’t worry, Yuu. I won’t give up on you. I’ll wait for as long as it takes. I don’t want to force you into anything so soon either, if it’s something you’re unsure about. We’ll take things slow, alright?”  
   
Yuu nodded up to the brunet, smiling gratefully in return. “Okay. Just as long as you know it’s not personal. It’s just a matter of time… I promise.”  
   
Yutaka’s face instantly lightened up at the sound of his words.  
   
“I’ll wait,” Yutaka promised on his end as well, a cheeky smile upon his lips.  
   
Yuu hoped desperately he wouldn’t break Yutaka’s heart.  
   
~  
   
They soon returned to the dinner party to gather their belongings, noting it was getting late and the journey back to their home would still require some time. After bading their goodbyes to Yutaka’s family – and enduring  _more_ unforgiving stares from Yutaka’s relatives from Yuu’s end – the both of them were quickly seated back in the black Rolls Royce, en route back to their apartment.  
   
As Yutaka began chattering on about his mother’s side of the family, delving into his family’s history, Yuu retrieved his phone out from his pocket out of habit, having not checked it the entire evening. It wasn’t as if he expected much messages, since Yutaka was usually the one who texted him, but Takanori, and occasionally Akira, had been messaging him more frequently now, worrying over Yuu’s welfare. And he didn’t want to leave them any of their texts hanging if they did; Yuu knew they were only asking after him out of concern, after all.  
   
But Yuu had never expected he would be seeing Kouyou’s texts instead.  
   
Yuu’s heart stopped as he came face to face with Kouyou’s name in his inbox; the gnawing pain in his heart coming to life at the very sight of the man, who had so intensely broke his heart, contacting him again. Yutaka’s voice in the background was drowned out by now, too many questions running through Yuu’s mind for him to even stay conscious of his surroundings any longer. Yuu’s fingers trembled as he gripped the base of his phone tightly, anxiety consuming him, stealing his breath. Yuu couldn’t even read the few words in the short messages Kouyou had sent to him; his mind was struggling so much to comprehend the idea of Kouyou  _even_ texting him, that piecing together these few words were proving to be an actual task for him.  
   
But when Yuu finally cleared his mind enough to read what Kouyou had written to him, Yuu had to resist the urge to burst into tears.  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _Can we meet?_  
   
**_Kouyou:_** _I still love you_  
   
Yuu couldn’t stay calm, at all.  
   
He loved him.  _Kouyou still loved him_. And this meant that Kouyou missed him, right? Kouyou must have missed him to text him these. Or had Kouyou just been drunk? But even if he had been under the influence of alcohol, to text these to Yuu must mean that he meant them, right?  
   
Yuu didn’t know how to accurately describe his emotions right now, but it felt as if a huge burden had been lifted off his heart. Yuu spent this whole week thinking he had been the only one to have invested his whole heart in their relationship, and now Kouyou was proving him wrong. Now Kouyou was telling him that he still loved Yuu, too. Now Kouyou was telling him that – despite having ruthlessly broken up with Yuu and refusing to acknowledge his existence – Kouyou  _still_  wanted him. Kouyou did love him, after all. Kouyou wasn’t that heartless beast Yuu had seen in the office. Yuu hadn’t been alone in this, all this time. Yuu hadn’t been alone in his love at all.  
   
_Relief_. That was probably the one word that was able to sum up Yuu’s thoughts as he scanned through Kouyou’s messages over and over again. Yuu was dead  _relieved_. He really hadn’t been the only one in love, after all; Yuu really hadn’t been the delusional one to believe everything would work out.  
   
Kouyou was suffering on his end, too. Kouyou  _had_ to. Kouyou still loved him. And Kouyou had cast him so cruelly away.  
   
Kouyou must be regretting everything, now. Kouyou had to be. Kouyou  _had_ to be dying with the realization that he had hurt the one person that he prized so highly in his eyes. Kouyou made so many promises to Yuu, and he had broken every single one of them. Kouyou  _must_ be in pain. Yuu wouldn’t be able to forgive him if he wasn’t.  
   
Because Yuu couldn’t take the thought of having been the only one hurting after all of this, Yuu really couldn’t. Yuu missed Kouyou with every inch of his soul, though he loathed him just as much for abandoning him like this. And Yuu did hate him; he despised Kouyou with all his heart. He abhorred the blond for having treated him so harshly, all because of a mistake that Yuu hadn’t even intentionally made with the sole purpose of hurting Kouyou. Yuu  _never_ wanted to hurt anyone.  
   
And Yuu detested how harsh Kouyou was; he detested how Kouyou had been so blind with anger, so consumed by his own emotions, that he hadn’t spared a thought for the raven’s own feelings at all. That he’d left Yuu in pain, crying all the way back home alone.  
   
But if Kouyou just told him that he had been lying on his bed late at night, thinking of Yuu and longing for him to return to his side just as Yuu had been longing for Kouyou to return to his; if Kouyou would just tell Yuu everything he’d been thinking while they were apart from each other… Yuu might – just  _might_ – find it in him to forgive Kouyou. Just a little bit.  
   
Just a little bit…  
   
“Who texted you?” Yutaka asked, suddenly, midway his chatter, noticing Yuu had gone quiet once he’d taken a look at his phone. Yuu immediately looked up to the brunet and hurriedly hid his phone away, placing it face-down against his lap.  
   
Yutaka couldn't know about this. Not when they’d spent the whole of the past week together; not when they’d almost kissed half an hour ago…  _Fuck_.  
   
What had Yuu gotten himself into again?  
   
“No one,” Yuu answered, perhaps a little too hastily, instantly rousing suspicion from Yutaka.  
   
“Was it Takanori?” Yutaka questioned, skeptical as to why Yuu saw a need to hide this information from him. “What’s going on? Why do you look so nervous?”  
   
“It’s nothing,” Yuu looked away, though he still clutched his phone close to him for comfort, the reminder of Kouyou’s love for him burning at the back of his head, already nursing his wounded heart and healing it almost instantaneously.  
   
And Yuu thought Yutaka wouldn’t be able to deduce the reason for the unexpected change in his mood, but he had severely underestimated the brunet. Yutaka already had an inkling who could have possibly stirred such a reaction from the raven, and the mere thought of this perfect night – as well as  _all_ of Yutaka’s efforts in managing to convince Yuu he would be a far better choice than the blond – going to waste just because of a thirty-five year old CEO’s appearance  _again_ made Yutaka slowly simmer with rage.  
   
_I can’t possibly be losing Yuu again like this._  
   
“Is it Kouyou?” Yutaka barked, and the way he was suddenly raising his tone at the raven shocked Yuu. Yutaka was so rarely mad at him that whenever he was, it came as a surprise. “It’s Takashima Kouyou, isn’t it? Did he just text you?”  
   
Yuu winced at the accusation – despite it being true. Yuu decided there was no point in hiding this from the brunet; Yutaka would find out sooner or later even if he lied, anyway. “He did,” Yuu answered solemnly, swallowing down hard.  _I’m sorry_.  
   
“What did he say?” Yutaka seethed, though the crestfallen look on his face gave his true emotions away. “Is he asking to get back together with you again?”  
   
Yuu turned his head away, unsure if he should be revealing any more about this to the brunet. When it became apparent that Yuu was reluctant to speak any further on the subject, Yutaka emitted a frustrated growl, cursing Kouyou under his breath.  
   
“I can’t believe this,” Yutaka snarled, eyes fiery with anger. “I can’t believe this, Yuu. You spent one whole week crying over that jackass who treated you like shit, and you’re still going to end up crawling back to him, anyway. Meanwhile, I’ve been trying… so  _fucking_ hard, just to get you to see that I could give you the life that you want. Don’t you see? I can give you everything you want, too. Kouyou’s just going to hurt you again. You know damn well he will.”  
   
Yuu looked forlornly to his phone, knowing Kouyou was just a text message away. But he knew what Yutaka said was right – Kouyou didn’t deserve Yuu at all. Not after he’d pulled such a stunt on the raven; not after he’d left Yuu in the lurch like this for a week. Yutaka had been the one to sit by him and help mend his broken heart, and he made sure never to leave Yuu alone to his own thoughts, afraid if he did so, Yuu would spiral down further in an unescapable hole of depression. The only reason Yuu had managed to get through the past week so far was because of Yutaka… Not Kouyou.  
   
Kouyou was the one who had landed him here in the first place.  
   
“You said it was only a matter of time until I could get through to your heart,” Yutaka said, upset, and the way his voice croaked as he spoke made Yuu’s heart twist in regret. “Or was that a lie, too? You’re learning from Kouyou now, aren’t you? Making promises you can’t keep and breaking the hearts of people who care for you the most without good reason at all. I guess I should have seen it coming.”  
   
Yuu gazed to him in guilt, shame-faced for having been called out like that. Yutaka’s comparison of him to his heartless ex-lover immediately got to him. “I’m not like Kouyou at all… I would never break any promises to you.” Yuu would never wish Kouyou’s vicious treatment to him upon anyone. Yuu would never do anything of that sort to Yutaka.  
   
Yutaka looked to him doubtfully, sucking in a long, agonized breath himself.  
   
“Really? Is that so? Then prove it. You know I’d never make you do anything you don’t want to, but I don’t trust Takashima Kouyou anymore. I really want you to think this through, Yuu. I really want you to see what is good for you. Even if we’re not looking at his bipolar personality… Even if you got back together with him, have you ever thought about your future with him? How that would be like? He’s so much older, and you’re so…  _young_.  
   
You and me – we could grow old together, Yuu. We’d understand each other. But he’s already in the next phase of his life, and you’re barely graduating university. Do you really want to spend your life with a man like  _that_?”  
   
However painful those words might have been to hear, Yuu knew Yutaka was speaking nothing but the truth. The age difference between Yuu and Kouyou had never posed as an issue for them in their month of courtship so far, but Yuu knew it could become a serious threat and problem to their relationship if they decided to stay together in the long run. Yutaka was right; Kouyou was already moving on to the next phase in his life, whereas Yuu was still a young, naïve college student.  
   
Although their conversational topics had never run out despite their age difference, Yuu knew his knowledge paled in comparison to older, more matured partners like Christine, when it came to this aspect. Kouyou was an intelligent person of his own; Yuu was sure the man preferred to hold intellectual conversations, instead of the childish conversations that always occurred with Yuu around.  
   
“I guess you’re right,” Yuu admitted, his heart weighing like stones at the realization. “Kouyou and I… We’re incompatible. We’re just not well-suited with each other. I must have been too excited to see his text… I couldn’t think straight. But you’re right. You always know the best, Yutaka.”  
   
To even think that he could have a future with Kouyou – how foolish could Yuu get? To even contemplate forgiving the man in the first place… Yuu must be blind. Or incredibly soft-hearted. Or blind.  
   
Or still so incredibly in love and delusioned, to the point where he would gobble up anything remotely romantic said to him by the blond CEO.  
   
“He hurt you, Yuu,” Yutaka reminded, slowly calming down once he saw that his words were already making waves in the raven-haired’s head. “I just need you to remember that.”  
   
_Oh_ , Yuu remembered well enough. Yuu could recount the thousand fleeting moments in which he lay himself brokenheartedly back against his bed, painful memories flashing past before his eyes.  Yuu could recount the many tears fallen and each time his pillow had been soaked. Even the way Kouyou’s cruel words to him had reverberated in his head through day and night; the way Kouyou had destroyed any form of self-love Yuu ever had for himself. The way Kouyou had humiliated Yuu before his own ex; the way Kouyou spared no thought for the fragile raven at all.  
   
Kouyou had been so inhumane. And now he was crawling back to Yuu, expecting the raven to give in easily to him with just a simple  _I still love you_. What did he take Yuu as? An overly attached pet that would return to him whenever and wherever he so wished?  
   
Yuu felt his cold heart harden once more. How lowly did Yuu think himself as? Yuu wasn’t going to be the mousy, delicate princess that Takashima Kouyou was so used to dumping aside once he found no use of him no more.  
   
“He hurt me,” Yuu repeated, his dark eyes turning void of emotion. “He hurt me, Yutaka.”  
   
No more late nights of crying, wondering what he’d done wrong.  
   
“He did,” Yutaka echoed, a small smile creeping up upon his lips. “And you won’t ever allow that again.”  
   
No more wishing he could be someone else; someone like Christine.  
   
“No,” Yuu said in a hiss. “I won’t ever let him get to me again.”  
   
No more Takashima Kouyou, ever.  
   
“And  _I_  won’t let him get to you, either,” Yutaka murmured, his hand reaching out across the car seat to grasp at Yuu’s. He locked his hand with Yuu’s, his fingers grazing gently across Yuu’s knuckles.  
   
“I’ll wait by your side forever. I’ll wait, Yuu. And that’s a promise that I’ll keep.”  
   
~  
   
Yuu never answered Kouyou’s messages.  
   
The raven turned up for class the next day, much to Takanori’s surprise. He’d been delighted to see Yuu back to his usual self, of course, but every single time he brought Kouyou up, Yuu went rigid and refused to participate in the discussion of his ex-lover. Takanori couldn’t blame Yuu for his reluctance to do so, and soon took the hint and stopped broaching the subject. He was pleased enough that Yuu had finally gotten over the break up, since he had been worrying over the raven-haired’s mental health the entirety of the past week, and if pretending Kouyou existed no longer in their lives was something Takanori had to do to help Yuu get better again, Takanori didn’t mind doing so.  
   
Takanori also stopped bringing Akira up, since he wasn’t sure if his boyfriend’s association to Kouyou would hit a sore spot in Yuu as well. There was something that Takanori had noticed, though –  
   
Yuu couldn’t stop talking about Yutaka. Takanori had always known Yutaka to be a roommate of Yuu’s, but the raven-haired never brought him up too often, since there usually wasn’t much to be discussed about him, anyway. But this time,  _this time_ , it was plain as day that  _something_  had occurred over the weekend. And no, it wasn’t the dinner party that Yuu was referring to – though Takanori knew it must have taken place then.  
   
The way Yuu talked avidly about having met Yutaka’s family again over the weekend sent warning bells ringing in the back of Takanori’s head, and he made a mental note to inform Akira about this, since the both of them had been fervently exchanging notes on Kouyou and Yuu’s mental condition over the past week.  
   
Needless to say, Kouyou wasn’t doing too good on his end, either. But at least he hadn’t been spending time with anyone else besides Akira, since the blond had mainly been holing himself up at his workplace and burying himself in work; whereas Yuu seemed to be moving on a little  _too_ quickly to his roommate.  
   
Takanori could see what was happening  _so_  clearly, and he knew this wouldn’t end well for any party if it continued. But before he could even get a word in, the raven was rushing off after class, claiming he had a lunch date with Yutaka today.  
   
_Oh_ , Takanori had to warn Akira about this, and  _fast_.  
   
~  
   
“So, we’ll meet at the front entrance?” Yuu asked, smiling, holding the phone close to his ear as he spoke. “My class just ended. I’m already walking towards the front entrance. Where are you?”  
   
Yutaka’s muffled voice could be heard answering over the speaker, sending the raven laughing softly to himself.  
   
“Okay, hurry up!” Yuu teased. “My stomach’s growling. It’s so rare we’re eating out, so I want to eat somewhere fancy. You’re paying!”  
   
Once the raven had reached the university’s front entrance, the sight of a crowd of university students – mostly made up of girls – gathered before the road immediately confused Yuu, distracting him momentarily.  
   
“Is there an event happening at our university today?” Yuu asked over the phone, puzzled. “There’s a crowd here. Hold on. I’ll check it out. I’ll meet you here when you arrive?”  
   
Slipping his phone back into the pocket of his jeans once he’d ended the call, Yuu found himself wedging past the crowd curiously, trying to get a peek at what all the fuss was about. Had a famous celebrity come to pay a visit to their school?  _That_  would explain the multitude of girls in attendance, speaking in hushed whispers and gesturing excitedly to the sight before them…  
   
Once Yuu managed to get to the front of the crowd, however, he found that he was sorely proven wrong.  
   
There _he_ stood, leaning against his black Lamborghini, in all of his perfection and glory; his pale blond hair brushed suavely to the side, his obscure eyes glistening under the sun, his broad shoulders well-fitted in his white buttoned-up shirt, his sleeves rolled up halfway to reveal the defined veins on his strong built arms that Yuu was all  _too_ familiar with.  
   
And in his hands, he held a huge bouquet of beautifully arranged blood-red roses, the same one that he always gifted Yuu.  
   
What the living hell was Kouyou doing here? Hadn’t Yuu made his point very clear when he failed to answer any of Kouyou’s messages? Was Kouyou unable to get some sort of clue that the raven wasn’t interested in any of his apologies or…  _I love you_ s?  
   
Yuu ignored the mild squeezing of his heart at Kouyou’s thoughtful gesture, knowing it wouldn’t do any good if he lingered any longer here in Kouyou’s presence. He had already decided that there was no point returning to the blond’s side, and Yuu would stick to it. Yuu had Yutaka, now. Yuu didn’t need Kouyou anymore.  
   
Kouyou could suck it. He could wait here all day if he wanted to.  
   
Yuu begun to turn his head, preparing to make his way back to meet with Yutaka, but Kouyou’s eyes caught sight of him faster than he could run; and the raven-haired found himself trapped as he heard the very call of his name upon Kouyou’s lips.  
   
“Yuu!”  
   
Yuu felt an instant pang to his heart once Kouyou’s desperate voice reached his ears. He had never thought he’d hear the blond calling for him like this again, so yearningly, so affectionately.  
   
It almost felt like nothing had changed between them at all.  
   
Although Yuu refused to turn his head back to him, his legs – for some reason – were refusing to move, too. And as he stood still, heart fluttering madly in his chest for  _god_ knows why, he heard the distinctive footsteps of Kouyou running to him from behind, before finally feeling the familiar touch of Kouyou’s hand circling around his wrist, enclosing him in a gentle grip.  
   
Yuu couldn’t bring himself to run away.  
   
“Yuu…” Kouyou murmured softly, pleadingly, pulling the raven closer to him. He sounded so tender, so kind, so like the old Kouyou Yuu had once known. He sounded like the Kouyou whose arms Yuu could readily fall back into whenever he so wished. He sounded like the Kouyou that would do anything within his power to make Yuu happy again.  
   
He sounded like  _his_ Kouyou.  
   
And it was with this thought that Yuu finally convinced himself to turn and gaze up into Kouyou’s eyes, wanting to take a good look at the blond, wanting to see for himself how much the man that had brutally broken up with him a week ago had changed since then.  
   
But _this_ was not what he had been expecting.  
   
Yuu’s eyes widened in shock when he came face to face with Kouyou’s appearance. He had looked fine, when he’d been standing a distance away, leaning against his sports car, but now that Yuu could see him up-close – the man looked  _ghastly_. He looked like death himself. Dark, unforgiving eyebags decorated his twinkling eyes; illuminated with hope, now that Yuu was standing before him. And Kouyou’s strong jawline had always been prominent, but they were scaringly prominent now, almost protruding, his face absent of fat. Yuu noted with a heavy heart that this meant the blond probably hadn’t been eating nor sleeping well; and he wondered if it was because of him.  
   
Because even though Yuu had felt the same – loss of appetite and all – Yuu still had Yutaka by his side, to force him to eat, to take care of him, to make sure he still functioned like a sane human being despite his heartbreak. But Kouyou had no one constant by his side like that at all; Kouyou would have had no one to turn to, and Kouyou wouldn’t have had the ego to seek help from anyone, either.  
   
Had Kouyou been suffering on his own, all alone, all these while? Had Yuu  _actually_ thought wrong about him?  
   
“Yuu, I’ve missed you so much,” Kouyou rushed to say, spewing out words faster than he could think, and Yuu realized – as Kouyou gripped him tighter with every passing second – that it was probably because the older man was afraid Yuu would leave, he was afraid Yuu might run out on him any time now, and he wanted to get his words out before Yuu could act on such a thought. Kouyou knew he didn’t  _even_ deserve Yuu hearing him out; but the blond was frantic,  _god_ , he was hopeless, in this love for Yuu, and he would try any possible way to just to get Yuu back again.  
   
“And I wanted to see you as quickly as possible. I know you probably saw my texts last night, and I know you probably need some time, before you can  _even_ stand the sight of me again, but I just needed to come and see you personally. And apologize. I’m so sorry, Yuu. I thought it all through. I fucked up. I fucked up  _real_ bad. And I went back on all the promises I made to you. I’m sorry. I love you so much–”  
   
But then he was cut off midway his speech as Yuu felt himself being pulled roughly away from Kouyou’s grasp, almost forcefully, almost savagely, right into a pair of familiar arms, colliding right against a chest.  
   
And that was then Yuu knew Kouyou’s time was up. Yutaka had arrived.  
   
“What’s going on?” Came Yutaka’s snappy voice, his arms tightening their hold around the raven. Yuu watched as all the hope in Kouyou’s eyes immediately flickered out, shocked by the sight of Yutaka and Yuu acting so intimate with each other, having never anticipated such a thing to happen in his absence.  
   
“What…  _What_?” Kouyou’s hands shuddered, slightly, the bouquet of roses in his hands shaking along to the momentum. There was the flash of shock in his eyes, then confusion, then denial; all so painfully obvious as usual. Kouyou had never done a good job in masking his emotions in front of the raven, and Yuu always saw right through him.  
   
And then lastly – the hurt. Pure heartbreak was written all over Kouyou’s face, as he slowly came to terms with the realization that Yuu had moved on from him to someone else; he wasn’t even in a state well enough to muster up the courage to pick a fight with Yutaka.  
   
Yuu could almost hear Kouyou’s heart shattering into pieces in the silence.  
   
And Yuu knew exactly how it felt like, because he had been in the exact same position Kouyou had been in just one week ago. Right in front of Christine. Right when Yuu had been clutching the bento he’d prepared for Kouyou to himself, so hopeful and naïve, having thought his efforts to woo Kouyou back would work.  
   
Now Yuu was doing precisely the same to him. Now Yuu finally knew how it felt like to hold someone else’s heart in your hands like this, to have power to crush it and tear it so ruthlessly apart. Did Kouyou feel like this when he had the chance to tear Yuu’s heart apart? Did Kouyou see the chance to abuse this very power he knew he held, and took it?  
   
Yuu knew he would never get a chance like this again.  
   
And Yuu didn’t know why – or maybe he did, and maybe he wasn’t willing to own up to it – but the next few words left his mouth without a second thought:  
   
“I’m not sure why he’s here. Do you know him, Yutaka?”  
   
Yuu’s face, completely void of empathy; Yuu’s eyes, completely stone-cold; Yuu’s voice, completely lethal, laced with venom Yuu hadn’t known existed himself.  
   
And Yuu watched with his very own eyes as Kouyou fell right apart before him.  
   
“I don’t know him, Yuu.” Yutaka caught on easily, the smile on his face smug, knowing  _exactly_ what the raven was doing.  
   
The man he once envied was no more.  
   
“Good,” Yuu laughed, eyes tracing over Kouyou’s hollow eyes, and his sunken cheeks, and his gaunt face. “Because you see, Yutaka…”  
   
Kouyou knew very clearly himself what the raven was doing, too. But the blond made no move to stop him; his face was resigned.  
   
He knew perfectly well that he deserved it. He knew perfectly well more than anyone else.  
   
“…I don’t know him, too,” Yuu finally finished off.  
   
And once he did, Yuu was surprised by the tremendous amount of weight that he felt had been lifted off his shoulders.  
   
Yuu realized he could finally feel again.  
   
And those were the last words Yuu left Kouyou with, before walking off, Yutaka’s arm around his waist.  
   
Kouyou allowed the bouquet he had been clutching in his grasp to crash right down to the ground, just as easily as how his heart just did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another one of my fav chapters. For very obvious reasons. :)
> 
> Tell me what you think. I sense a certain darkness looming over (what some of you tell me) to be your favourite couple xx
> 
> Oh! And Kouyou finally made an appearance again... after missing in action for 3 chapters. Lol, I have some of you guys telling me "HE BETTER BE IN THE NEXT CHAPTER OR ELSE" sooo, here's your Kouyou for you! Be careful for what you wish for :p
> 
> Also, I'm surprised I even updated this weekend! I didn't think I had time to, but I'm glad I was able to. See you guys soon :D


	36. Chapter 36

The feeling had worn off as fast as it’d come.  
  
Yuu wouldn’t open the door. He’d locked it tightly shut after returning home, coming straight from the silent lunch with Yutaka, a lunch that’d been filled with nothing with fake smiles and a lonely heart that was slowly falling apart. And Yutaka had looked genuinely happy throughout, and Yuu knew exactly the reason why; but Yuu couldn’t do it. He couldn’t continue lingering in Yutaka’s presence any longer, munching on his fish and chips, when he was so badly holding back tears that would soon overflow like the regret currently outpouring from his heart.  
  
So he let it all out. He’d hastened to his room in godspeed, locked himself in without another word, and slid his back right down against his bedroom door, curling up to himself.  
  
And he let it all out. Water crept out of his eyes slowly, first in tiny crystal beads, one after another, trickling down his cheeks soundlessly. At first in sadness, at first only in self-pity. But then the realization of what he’d done to Kouyou  _hit_  him, and fear rose behind his eyes accordingly. And then his whole body began to shake, and the choking sobs took over his throat. And then Yuu couldn’t feel anymore.  
  
He couldn’t feel the smugness he’d felt back then, at his university’s entrance, standing right before Kouyou, laughing into his face. He couldn’t feel the pleasure anymore; the one that made him feel superior, the one that satisfied his need to triumph, to step over the blond. He couldn’t feel a single ounce of satisfaction. All he felt was dread. And Yuu knew exactly what he had done.  _Oh_ , he knew, alright.  
  
He had been Kouyou, once. He had stood there, innocent and naïve, thinking that his sincere efforts could work. He had stood there, hopeful and in love, confident that Kouyou would take him back as long as he apologized and promised never to repeat his mistakes. Yuu had been the one hurt, once. And Yuu knew just how fragile Kouyou was as a person, as a heart, and Yuu had always known the blond had a certain vulnerability to him that Yuu could misuse and abuse. And when that power slipped right out of Yuu’s fingers; when Kouyou showed that he didn’t need Yuu anymore, Yuu had been disoriented, and lost.  
  
But Yuu saw his chance, and he took it. And Yuu tried to argue in his head that  _anyone_  would have done the same. Anyone else who would have gotten an opportunity to break their ex’s heart in the exact same way they had their hearts broken by them – they would have done the same. Yuu was human, after all. And humans craved a need for revenge, and they craved retribution. Retaliation.  
  
Yuu wouldn’t stand being on the losing end of this. He couldn’t. He couldn’t let Kouyou do that to him.  
  
But the feeling was already gone. Was it worth it, in the end? Was it really? Yuu had only felt the smugness for a while, and then it went away. Yuu had felt powerful for a second, and then it didn’t matter anymore. Because when Yuu walked away, he couldn’t resist turning back one last time to gaze upon Kouyou’s figure again. And he hadn’t missed the way Kouyou’s bouquet of roses fell right to the ground, or the way Kouyou’s shoulders sank, or the way Kouyou stood rooted in his spot, his fists furiously trembling by his sides.  
  
And Yuu wondered if Kouyou had been crying, but Yuu didn’t want to think about it. Yuu didn’t want to know. Yuu had never made the blond cry, and the thought of being responsible for the tears that shed down his pale, thin face made Yuu’s heart constrict in pain.  
  
Yuu had never hurt so much before. This felt even worse than the previous times Kouyou yelled at him, and it felt even worse than being ignored. Knowing that Yuu had executed his revenge and broken Kouyou’s heart in the process made Yuu pain in a way like never before, and it made him sob even harder. And when he cried there was certain rawness to it, and the pain in his chest felt fresh like an open wound.  
  
Yuu shouldn’t have done it. He wouldn’t have done it. If this had gone the way he’d wanted it to, he would have kissed Kouyou at the very first sight of him. He would have allowed Kouyou to take him into his arms, and he would have kissed the sides of Kouyou’s hollow cheeks and promised to make him more meals so he would eat, because Kouyou wouldn’t –  _shouldn’t_  – be so thin. And he would have seen Kouyou’s exhausted face light up in joy, and Kouyou would have been so,  _so_  happy. And Yuu would be, too. Yuu would have taken the bouquet of roses into his hands, and he would have smelled them, would have told Kouyou he shouldn’t have bought them. And Kouyou would have bestowed a soft kiss against his hair, like he usually did, and tell Yuu that he couldn’t  _not_ have bought something for his princess, because otherwise how could Kouyou be a befitting prince?  
  
Now Yuu wouldn’t ever have any of that again, because he fucked up. He saw his chance, and he took it. And see where that got him? He’d fucked up. He lost Kouyou in the process of gaining his own satisfaction – perhaps even forever – and now Kouyou would never forgive him. Kouyou wouldn’t want him, anymore. And this was the real deal, this time. Because who would want someone like Yuu? Someone who only acted on his desires, sparing no thought for the ones who truly cared for him. Yuu didn’t even deserve Yutaka, at this rate. Yuu deserved no one.  
  
Yuu hated himself more than anything in the world.  
  
Harrowing thoughts slipped into Yuu’s mind, as Yuu hugged his knees to himself, rocking his body back and forth. Yuu had thought he wouldn’t ever forgive Kouyou for all he’d done to him, much less still love him, but love wasn’t something that you got over so easily, Yuu knew now. Love wasn’t something you could throw around so easily, and there was only such a thin line between love and hate. Yuu had only hated Kouyou because he’d failed to understand things from Yuu’s side of the story, but Yuu hadn’t thought of how Kouyou had begun to view him, either. A lying, cheating whore? A slut that only cared about how fat his partners’ wallets were? And Yuu knew that Kouyou had given him his whole heart, he really did. Kouyou must have felt utterly betrayed. Kouyou must have been so,  _so_  heartbroken.  
  
And now thanks to Yuu, he’d doubled the heartbreak. Kouyou really didn’t have to forgive Yuu for his mistakes, but Kouyou did. And Yuu abused that very kindness Kouyou had given to him. Yuu crushed it, like a boot to an ant. How could Kouyou ever forgive Yuu again?  
  
_I’m so sorry, Kouyou_ , Yuu pleaded in his mind, burying his head against his knees.  _I still love you, too._  
  
Akira’s name lit up on Yuu’s phone screen then, his phone urgently buzzing with a new text message.  
  
**_Akira:_** _Yuu, what did you do?_  
  
Yuu couldn’t find the strength to reply. But then he received a new text message from Akira again, only ten minutes later, dissolving Yuu into further sobs at the sight of it.  
  
**_Akira:_** _Yuu… why did you do it?_  
  
Kouyou must be suffering so much on his end, Yuu was sure of it. Yuu couldn’t even answer to Akira, anymore. Yuu knew the vice-president might have been on his side before, but he definitely wouldn’t be any longer, now. Not when Yuu had destroyed Kouyou entirely, inside out. Not when Yuu had been so unforgiving, so ruthless, exactly the kind of person Yuu had detested.  
  
Yutaka stood right outside Yuu’s door, listening to the raven’s every muffled sob. And Yutaka knew what it meant. Yutaka knew what every cry meant; he knew it better than anyone else.  
  
~  
  
Takanori knew what had happened, too. Yuu settled into class the next day, wondering if his friend would treat him any different, after having treated Akira’s best friend so horribly. But Takanori didn’t even mention a single thing, and he welcomed Yuu with open arms. He knew, though. Yuu could tell, because Takanori spoke with particular gentleness, and he had glanced to him at times, confusion clear in his eyes. Takanori didn’t understand, either, why Yuu had turned his back on Kouyou, but the man wasn’t going to question Yuu if Yuu didn’t want to tell. And so Takanori chatted on and on about the latest music he’d listened to, and recent news about his aunt’s new baby.  
  
Yuu would tell everything to Takanori eventually, but Yuu couldn’t bring himself to do so, now. He wanted to internalize the pain and the regret, and he wanted to give himself some time and space to think. He was grateful for Takanori’s silence on the matter, but he knew Takanori must be feeling some sort of hurt on his end, for being kept in the dark like this by his friend. Yuu knew that he didn’t owe it to anyone, to explain anything to them, but he also knew Takanori considered him a good friend, and he knew Takanori cared about him. Akira, too. Akira had always been so thoughtful, so understanding to him. But Yuu had let all of them down, and Yuu thought he at least owed an explanation to them, to give them a clue as to why everything was breaking down between him and Kouyou.  
  
And it was all Yuu’s fault. It was.  
  
Yuu had lunch that afternoon with Takanori, seeing as he hadn’t been spending much time with him so far. And it felt nice, for once; to be spending quality time with someone he cared about, other than Yutaka. For some reason, Yuu wasn’t so sure about Yutaka anymore. He’d thought Yutaka could eventually become someone Yuu could care about, much more than a best friend, but now, just the thought of having Yutaka’s arms around him made Yuu’s heart jump in fear. Perhaps it was because Yutaka had been there, when Yuu had rubbed it into Kouyou’s face that Yuu didn’t care about him anymore. Perhaps it was because Yutaka had been the main catalyst, too. Perhaps it was because Yuu knew deep down inside that had he not been meeting Yutaka for lunch that day, Yuu might have just fallen into Kouyou’s arms and kissed him and changed his mind about him. Perhaps it was because Yuu knew he was beginning to feel a need to prove something to Yutaka – after what Yutaka had said to him in the car, about being the kind of person that broke all his promises; perhaps it was because Yuu knew he’d never felt anything real for Yutaka in the first place.  
  
Yutaka had already mapped out his entire life for the both of them, but Yuu couldn’t answer to any of that. Who would do that? Who would map out their entire life with someone who hadn’t even agreed to give them their heart yet? How could Yuu answer up to that kind of responsibility? Why would Yutaka tell Yuu something like that?  
  
In a way, it angered Yuu. It angered him that Yutaka had told him all of his plans, because now Yuu felt obligated to fulfill them. Yuu was angry that Yutaka had fallen in love with him, when he could have chosen someone so much better than Yuu. Yuu was angry that he was stuck in such a situation, and he couldn’t shoulder all the blame on himself, he really couldn’t. And so he diverted a little of that anger to Yutaka instead, despite knowing it was the wrong thing to do so.  
  
But Yuu had already made so many mistakes, and adding one more to the list couldn’t hurt. Yuu just knew that he didn’t know what to do with Yutaka anymore, and he didn’t know how to tell him that it wasn’t okay, that Yuu felt like breaking down every second he was with him. Yuu felt trapped; Yuu felt suffocated. Yuu couldn’t be the person Yutaka wanted him to be, to fit into his life as a future doctor. And Yuu had wanted to tell Yutaka this, the moment Yutaka had revealed to him his plans, but Yuu had no heart to do so back then, not when the both of them had been so hopeful it would work out.  
  
Yuu couldn’t imagine being married to a doctor; waiting for Yutaka to return home everyday, to help him take off his white coat, to help massage his stiff shoulders. He couldn’t imagine visiting Yutaka at work, at the hospital, just because he missed his dear husband. He could do all of this as a best friend, sure, but he couldn’t do it as Yutaka’s lover. Yutaka was a good man, but Yuu had known since so long ago that they weren’t made for each other. His heart had never belonged to him, and it wouldn’t just change, now, just because Kouyou was out of the picture.  
  
Yuu hadn’t allowed Yutaka to kiss him for a reason. And he still craved every of Kouyou’s touches for the same reason.  
  
Yuu ended up having a considerably long lunch with Takanori, claiming it was so nice to be able to catch up with his friend like this, almost begging for Takanori to stay. Yuu didn’t want to have to go back to his apartment too soon and look upon Yutaka’s face and continue living a lie. Takanori must have sensed how much Yuu needed him by his side, and obliged, even if he was puzzled as to the reason why. Yuu had been afraid they wouldn’t have much to talk about, since Takanori was still holding back on talking about Akira, but they managed. Takanori was too happy to agree to more lunches like this, because he did care about Yuu, after all, and didn’t want him to be left alone in misery too much.  
  
Once it was approaching evening, though, Takanori appeared a little tense and edgy, his eyes nervously looking to the time. Yuu could guess why even without the man revealing it to him – Takanori must have agreed to a dinner date with Akira. So Yuu hurried to make himself scarce, telling Takanori that he’d be happy to see him tomorrow.  
  
Thus Yuu began the long walk home alone. He tried his hardest not to think about Kouyou again, but it was like ignoring the elephant in the room. Yuu couldn’t bring himself not to do so, not when he was beginning to imagine how his future would have been like with him. They had planned to live with each other, after all. Yuu had been preparing to move. Everything had been perfect. Yuu knew without a doubt that Kouyou would have taken good care of him, for the rest of his life. And Yuu would have done the same, too. It didn’t matter how much older Kouyou was. Nothing else would have mattered, not when they loved each other so much like this, Yuu knew now.  
  
Yuu hadn’t expected an important guest to be waiting for him beneath the block of his apartment. Yuu noted with disappointment that it wasn’t Kouyou’s signature black Lamborghini that had turned up, but instead a silver Volvo. He didn’t have time to ponder over who it was, until he strode past it, not expecting it to be waiting for him, and was surprised when he saw its driver getting out, hurrying to pull open the door for the person seated in the back seat.  
  
And out stepped the woman he’d come to envy, the one whom Yuu knew must have replaced him in Kouyou’s arms ever since their break up. Christine really was flawless; her dark hair fell in waves around her, though they were visibly much shorter than the last time Yuu had seen her. They used to trail down her back, almost reaching her posterior, but now they had been snipped off half the length, sweeping just below her shoulders.  
  
She still looked beautiful, anyway. Christine looked beautiful regardless the length of her hair. Her face was made up lighter this time, but her lips were still lined in bold, red lipstick. Her curled lashes fluttered up as she lay her gaze upon Yuu’s face. And dressed in a slim, white dress, covered sleekly with a grey fur shawl, Yuu swallowed hard as he watched Christine make her way to him gracefully, her footsteps matched with every loud clucking of her high heels.  
  
Their worlds clashed completely. Christine must be looking at his apartment block with distaste, seeing as how she probably lived in a mansion of her own. Kouyou’s apartment was already thrice the size of his, and Yuu was living in what was considered a well-to-do apartment, too, in the better side of the city. Yutaka had come from a wealthy family, and this apartment was under his parents’ name. But even then, Yuu had been invited to their house once, and their house may have been large, but still felt humble, and homely.  
  
Kouyou and Christine lived in a totally different league. Yuu shuddered to think the kind of life Christine was used to, if she was already being driven by a chauffeur on a daily basis. Yuu had no idea if she actually worked, either. Kouyou had never mentioned about working with her directly, only her father, and Yuu wondered if Christine was purely living off her family’s wealth, and was more of something like a socialite? Yuu wouldn’t be surprised if that were the case. Perhaps Christine went around meeting her father’s business contacts, hoping to meet the man of her dreams. Then she had found Kouyou, and they’d spent a good six years together, until she had broken Kouyou’s heart.  
  
It was with this painful reminder that Yuu realized he’d done the exact same thing to Kouyou.  
  
“Hello, Yuu.” Christine had never spoken to him head on before, never even bothered a greeting the last time she saw him. But here she was, her gaze unforgiving, her eyes filled with disdain. Yuu felt bad about himself, already. Christine just  _had_ that effect on him.  
  
“Do you have some time? I’d like to take you out for coffee.” Christine asked, her sentences curt and short. The more she spoke, the more intimidated Yuu felt. Christine spoke in the same way Kouyou and Akira always did; very polished and cultured, in such a distinctive manner that you could already envision the way she had already grown up – probably running around in large, golden hallways, having several maids to tie up ribbons in her hair.  
  
“Sure,” Yuu mumbled, though he was certain Christine would have gotten her way even if he hadn’t agreed, anyway. She had driven out all the way here to meet him – she wouldn’t be taking no for an answer. But why did Christine go to such lengths to see him? Did she already know what he’d done to Kouyou?  
  
He got into the car stiffly, and to his surprise, Christine waited for him to get in and be seated first before she followed suit. Had she been afraid Yuu would change his mind and run away? The chauffer soon closed the door after her, leaving Yuu sitting next to her in awkward silence.  
  
“How do you know where I live?” Yuu asked numbly, eyes barely staring straight to her. He could feel the engine revving up once more, and the car slowly pulling out of the road.  
  
“Kouyou didn’t tell me. I didn’t even bother to ask. You and I both know he’s not that type of person,” Christine answered, almost hatefully. Yuu was relieved by her answer – Kouyou really wasn’t that type of person, which was why Yuu had been so surprised Kouyou had refused to acknowledge who he was at the office back then. “I got someone else to do the dirty work for me. Find out things about you, that is.”  
  
Yuu could sense what she was implying, and his heart pounded hard in his chest. A smirk curved up on her face.  
  
“I know how you and Kouyou met,” Christine said, and she left it at that. Yuu didn’t know what else to say, but Christine seemed content leaving the conversation hanging. Yuu thought it to be the best, anyway. They would leave the rest for later.  
  
From the sound of it, it didn’t seem like Christine wanted to blackmail Yuu in any sort of way. If she did, she would be ruining Kouyou’s reputation at the same time, too. And she couldn’t do that, if she had her set her sights on Kouyou and wanted him back. She wouldn’t harm Kouyou’s name like that, because it meant she would be harming hers.  
  
~  
  
“I didn’t know he was that lonely,” Christine uttered, picking up her mug of coffee, taking a small sip. They’d come to a flashy hotel – not the usual one Kouyou had brought Yuu to, thank goodness – and settled into an expensive-looking café, with red velvet cushions as seats. Christine had ordered for Yuu, recommending him the café’s signature drink, already assuming Yuu wouldn’t have any preference since it would be his first time; and Yuu tried to summon anger at being so obviously crudely treated, but he couldn’t. Christine was right. Kouyou always ordered for him at restaurants, and Yuu never had any preference. It wasn’t like Yuu frequented these places on a daily basis. He had no idea what some things on the menu meant, sometimes.  
  
“Kouyou, I mean. I never thought of him to be the kind of person who pays for… sex,” Christine broke into an amused smile, revealing her pearly white teeth.  _God_ , she really was beautiful, Yuu had to give her that.  
  
“I’m not demeaning you, though,” Christine said, surprising Yuu with her words. “I am in no place to tell you what is right, or wrong to do. I have friends who fancy that kind of lifestyle, too. Granted, they’re not paid so obviously, like business transactions after every date. But they have grown up with money, and they don’t want to give up that kind of life, so they are always on the lookout for richer men out there. Once they find a man who is husband material, they stay with them, and always get lavish gifts in return. So, they may not be paid, but they’re set for life if they stay with their men. But I’m guessing this thing you’re doing is only temporary, until you finish college, that is.”  
  
Christine was startlingly understanding to Yuu’s plight, and the raven was at a loss of words. He had thought Christine would have laughed at Yuu’s profession, scorning him and even mocking him for it, but she did nothing of that sort. But it was still too early to tell, since they’d just started their coffee date, and Yuu wasn’t going to let his guard around her just down yet.  
  
“It is,” Yuu nodded in reply. “It  _is_  something that I started because of college. It’s too much to pay off for a broke student like me, who never had the privilege of growing up with money, so I found out about sugar dating, and started doing it. It’s… not a job that anyone can do, but at the same time, I find myself more suited to it, rather than being an ordinary waiter, I guess. I used to juggle three jobs. I had no time to even concentrate on school.”  
  
Christine looked like she had expected his answer from the start. Then again, didn’t she mention she had gotten someone to look into Yuu’s life?  
  
“Kouyou always liked his partners with dark hair,” Christine said, abruptly, looking to her mug. “I can see why he chose you. You’re pale, and you have very pretty eyes. You’re slender for a man, but your figure can be mistaken for a woman’s. I want to think that he chose you because of me, because of how I look. But I’d be lying to myself if I did that. Kouyou has a type, and anyone who looks at the both of us can tell. But there’s something different about you,” she gazed curiously to Yuu, away from her mug. “That is different from me. I’m thinking that’s the reason why Kouyou doesn’t want to return to my side, anymore. No matter how hard I try. I used to be able to get his attention so easily, with the mere flutter of my eyes, but now he won’t even blink at my presence. I wonder if it’s because I’m no longer attractive to him. And I’m wondering if you have something I don’t have.”  
  
Yuu wasn’t sure how take Christine’s compliments. The woman did truly seem like she envied Yuu’s supposed beauty – compared to Christine? Had everyone gone blind? – but at the same time, she appeared resentful and bitter about it. Yuu was baffled as to what she wanted from him. What was the true point of this meeting? Simply to rant to him about how Kouyou didn’t want her anymore? Or something else?  
  
“Kouyou looked happy with you in the office, though,” Yuu said quietly, wondering to himself why Kouyou even had a sudden change of heart. The CEO  _did_ look too crossed with Yuu to ever forgive him back there in the office, and Yuu still couldn’t believe Kouyou could change his mind about him, and turn up at his university just to seek for Yuu’s forgiveness.  
  
“I wish I could tell you he was,” Christine frowned. “But I know it was just an act. He knew, too. He was merely angry, and he needed to take it out on someone. You came at an unfortunate time. It had to be you. He didn’t call me after that, didn’t call even my father. He stayed away. I was heartbroken, of course. I came back daily, trying to see him, but he wouldn’t budge from his office. His secretary said he barely ate. I tried to feed him, tried to get him away from his work. Kouyou didn’t cry, not once. He’s not the type to cry – I’ve never seen him crying in the whole six years I’ve dated him,” Christine paused, saying, and Yuu nodded, agreeing.  
  
Kouyou really wasn’t the type to shed tears, but he’d come close to shedding them in Yuu’s presence, more than once, when he’d confided in Yuu about the man he used to be. Kouyou’s eyes had been shimmering then, glistening with tears that threatened to fall, and Yuu had never felt more in love. Yuu somehow knew Christine must never have had that kind of moment with Kouyou, before; it was something special, a side to Kouyou that he only reserved for Yuu. Kouyou always found it easier to allow Yuu to see his fragile side – the one that longed for love and affection, the one that had been so afraid Yuu wouldn’t stay.  
  
“But two days ago, Kouyou looked me in the eyes and told me to leave, his voice choked up. He said there was no point in coming to him anymore, because his heart belonged to someone else, and he’d driven him away. He was talking about you, Yuu. And you don’t know how much that hurt me. Because I do still love Kouyou, Yuu. I do.”  
  
Hearing Kouyou being described in so much pain ached Yuu’s heart immensely. The blond still cared so much for him, and Yuu had given up that one chance to be with him in exchange for regaining his pride. From the way Christine spoke, she mustn’t have seen Kouyou since two days ago, and that meant she musn’t have known about the fact that Kouyou had confronted him personally yesterday.  
  
“You were the one who broke up with Kouyou,” Yuu pointed out, almost angry on behalf of Kouyou. “You were the one who broke Kouyou’s heart, first.” Even though Yuu had been the second one to do so. Christine had been the first.  
  
“I did, and I regret it,” Christine answered, in an anguished voice, and the sincerity in her eyes made Yuu’s heart soften a little. Yuu could tell she  _meant_ it. She wasn’t just getting Kouyou back to spite him, or anything like that. Christine  _did_ feel something for the blond. “I regret it, every single day. I had him, but I pushed him away. But Kouyou used to be so busy, and he was taking me for granted. And sometimes he was selfish, because all he could see was what he wanted, and he thought I was whining too much.  
  
But Kouyou works so hard as a CEO, anyone can tell. He’s so young for his position, and there are so many critics and disbelievers out there. Kouyou has to work hard to prove them wrong, so he gets caught up in work sometimes. And I couldn’t see it when I was with him, but I see it, now. And I can see he has changed, because he made so much time for you. He sees you every week, doesn’t he? Sometimes even twice, or thrice. He drives personally to see you, and he buys flowers everytime. He used to get his secretary to order flowers for me, and a delivery man would get them to me. Kouyou never got them on his own for me. But he did for you. He’s putting aside so much time, and it’s not fair, because where is he getting all these time from? He never ever made time for me.”  
  
By this point in time, Christine looked as if she was almost crying. Her throat had gotten hoarse and her eyes were fluttering up and down madly, as if trying to blink away the tears. Yuu felt an overwhelming sense of pity come over him. Christine had been with Kouyou for six years, after all, and it was fair for her to expect things from her boyfriend. Akira even said everyone thought they would get married. Christine must have thought the same, too.  
  
“I’m so jealous, of the way he looks at you and treats you,” Christine bitterly admitted, eyes looking up to the ceiling as she attempted to contain her tears. “You made him unable to eat. You made him unable to sleep. He’s  _dying_ , at his workplace, because of you. His face is so thin, and he’s losing weight. He looks at photos on his phone, sometimes, and they’re all of you. Even when he was angry with you, he still looked at them. And he still smiled. He still smiled after looking at them. It’s not fair. It’s just not fair. I want  _this_  Kouyou. I want the Kouyou you have.”  
  
Yuu hadn’t known Kouyou did that. Yuu hadn’t known Kouyou would look back on the photos they had taken together, since Kouyou always lamented about the selfies that Yuu made them take. But knowing that Kouyou looked at them still, in his spare time, smiling like a doofus at the sight of Yuu, made Yuu think about the insensitive way he’d crushed Kouyou’s heart just yesterday.  
  
Was Kouyou still looking at his photos, even now? Or had he deleted them off his phone, already?  
  
“I don’t know how, but you’ve changed Kouyou,” Christine muttered, irked, wiping furiously at her mascara-stained eyes. “And I keep wondering if I had stayed with Kouyou, if I hadn’t broken up with him, would he have changed, too? Or would he have stayed the same cold, selfish, ignorant Kouyou I always knew? I kept wondering if I’d lost my chance. Or had he changed only because of you?”  
  
Yuu wasn’t sure how to answer that. “I’m really not sure if I’ve done anything, at all.” Because at the end of the day, it was Kouyou that decided to turn over a new leaf himself. It was Kouyou who had chosen to treat Yuu with care, determined not to allow this relationship to fail just like his last one. It was Kouyou who had felt Yuu to be worth it, and did everything within his power to make Yuu stay.  
  
And Yuu still left.  
  
“I came here today, to plead with you,” Christine breathed, clearing up her throat, calming herself down as she tried to get to the point. “I know what you want. You are a poor college student, who really needs the finances to pay off his bills. I don’t know how you’ve gotten Kouyou under your spell, but I need you to go. I will give you any sum you quote me for, if you give me your word that you will break Kouyou’s heart. I have money that can last you for a lifetime. All I want is Kouyou’s heart back.”  
  
Christine  _definitely_ didn’t know that Yuu had just broken Kouyou’s heart yesterday. Because if she knew, she wouldn’t be here, asking to write Yuu a cheque. If she knew, she would have been well on her way to visit Kouyou, attempting to nurse his broken heart. But she had chosen to visit Yuu instead, deciding to tempt him with promises of money.  
  
Yuu could see where she was coming from, he really did. But this wasn’t the way to go, and they both knew it. Even if Yuu told Kouyou he hated him a million times, who was to guarantee that Kouyou would fall right into Christine’s arms? Who was to guarantee Christine would be the one he would choose again? Who knew Kouyou’s heart better than the man himself?  
  
“You want me to break Kouyou’s heart,” Yuu repeated, enunciating his words, practically in disbelief. “Just so you can have a chance to get  _my_ Kouyou. The sweet one, the caring one, the one that isn’t foreign and detached. You want the Kouyou that I cultivated. You want the one that’s different from the one that you first fell in love with.”  
  
Christine was starting to grow hostile, sensing that Yuu wasn’t going to agree with her plan. “What’s the big deal, anyway? You work as a sugar baby. I’m offering you an easy way out. I can give you millions of dollars, while you ensure you never see Kouyou again. You wouldn’t even have to work for a good half of your life, if you know how to spend this money wisely. What’s one Kouyou to you? Use your charm and work it on some other wealthy CEO. But Kouyou is mine. This man is mine.”  
  
Yuu felt indignance rising in him at the way she was speaking about the blond. Christine could debase him, could think that Yuu was only in it for the money, but she  _couldn’t_ talk about Kouyou like that, as if he had no choice in this matter.  
  
“And who are you to decide that? Why aren’t you considering Kouyou’s feelings at all in this? Do you think he’d be happy knowing you bought me off to leave him alone?”  
  
“Please don’t ruin my life just because you can,” Christine seethed; clearly realizing Yuu wasn’t going to give in easily. Her red eyes burned straight into Yuu’s ones. “Kouyou and me, we’re perfect. We would have gotten married, sooner or later. I would have gotten my fairytale man.”  
  
“You only love him now after you see he’s changed,” Yuu glared to her, now understanding what she truly wanted. Christine wanted  _his_ Kouyou. “You wouldn’t have come back for him if he had remained the man he was with you for six years, would you? You didn’t love  _that_ Kouyou, at all. What makes you think you can stand Kouyou now, if you’ve already had your chance with him and found him difficult to stand?”  
  
“Because he’s different now!” Christine raised her voice, drawing attention to her in the café immediately. She hushened her voice soon after, mindful of everyone’s stares. “I want Kouyou to stare at photos of  _me_. He should have bought me flowers he’d chosen himself. He should have driven to see me, and he should have made all that time for me. Kouyou’s so demanding a person, but he’s not demanding when it comes to you, at all. He looks at you like you’re his goddess. His only ray of light. He thinks the world of you. But he thought nothing of me. He’d thought I was weak, and useless, and…” Christine’s lower lip trembled. “He never said it, but I know he did. And maybe he did love me, in his own silent way, but it’s different now. You’re different. And he loves you more. Maybe the him now can love me, the way I wanted to be loved. I really want Kouyou,  _please_ , just let me have him. I’m not asking for anything else.”  
  
Yuu had always thought if there were anyone that would have been suited for Kouyou, it would be Christine. But Yuu understood now, why they had broken up. Yuu understood why Akira thought Yuu to be a better fit for Kouyou. Yuu understood why Kouyou didn’t love her anymore. It didn’t necessarily have to do with Christine’s personality per say, but they were two pieces of the jigsaw puzzle that no longer matched. And Yuu couldn’t picture Kouyou spending his life with Christine anymore, not when he’d heard how their relationship used to be like. She was right; Christine and Yuu were totally different, despite having similar standards of beauty.  
  
Yuu wanted Kouyou to be happy. But he didn’t think Kouyou would be happy with Christine, and he didn’t want to do anything that dictated Kouyou’s future in any way. Yuu had absolutely no right to interfere with Kouyou’s choices, Yuu had no right to further ruin Kouyou like this. The way Christine spoke about Kouyou made Yuu think the woman hadn’t even realized she was beginning to treat Kouyou like a possession; just something that could come back to her anytime she so wished. She hadn’t been sparing a thought for Kouyou’s own feelings at all, and Yuu couldn’t do this to the blond whom he loved so much.  
  
Even if he had messed up big time yesterday, Yuu saw things so much clearer now, and he wanted to make it right. He wouldn’t allow himself to make the same mistake.  
  
“I can’t do it,” Yuu said, getting up from his seat. “I can’t do it, I’m sorry. I’m not going to accept any money from you, but know that I won’t contact Kouyou, either – god knows I don’t deserve him anymore, not after what I’ve done.” Christine looked confused at this point.  
  
“But listen, you’re not going to be able to control love. Kouyou’s heart is a fragile thing, but it’s so strong, too. Kouyou’s his own person, and you’re never going to control him. He loves whom he loves. He chooses whom he chooses. Maybe he will choose you. Maybe he will choose someone else. No one knows. But please don’t force him into anything, because he’s only human. He’s so demanding, but it’s come to a point where he has become exhausted now, I can tell. So please handle him with care. Please, if you decide to love him again, just don’t break his heart. He doesn’t deserve it. Thanks for the coffee, Christine. It was lovely meeting you.”  
  
And then he left her there, in her seat, pondering over the words he had said. Yuu hoped she understood what he meant; Christine was intelligent, she should understand his sentiment.  
  
“Yuu,” Her voice stopped Yuu in his tracks, just as he was on her way out of the café. She sounded completely broken, now, weariness evident in her voice.  
  
“My hair. It’s shorter now, because of you. I wanted to look like you, if only just to get Kouyou to look at me one more time. Oh, how the tables have turned. But he didn’t look at me once. He didn’t look at me at all.”  
  
That explained her new hair. Yuu wanted to tell her he’d left his hair long, too, because he’d been intimidated by Christine’s beauty, and he wanted to emulate that, if not just by a bit. And Yuu’s heart sank to the bottom of his stomach as he heard the confession she made, because he knew exactly how she felt. They both wanted to appeal the most to the person they loved, after all. They had been afraid, and challenged, by the sight of each other. And Kouyou wouldn’t ever know the lengths they went just to impress him at all.  
  
“I just want to know one last thing, before you leave. Kouyou used to take me to this café all the time, when we were together. This was my favourite café. Has he… ever taken you here before?”  
  
Yuu knew what Christine wanted to know. Yuu had replaced her in Kouyou’s eyes, and she wanted to know if Kouyou had begun taking Yuu to places that she and him used to frequent; she wanted to know if Kouyou had revealed this special place that belonged to  _them_  to Yuu. Because that was all Christine had left – a favourite café that Kouyou used to bring her to all the time. And if Kouyou had begun taking his new lover to this place, too, Christine would probably have nothing left, would have no memory that solely belonged to her and Kouyou.  
  
“This is the first time I’ve ever set foot in here,” Yuu said softly, head turning to her. Even if Christine had lost the man she loved, Yuu wanted to let her know Kouyou still respected her enough to leave their memories alone. Kouyou had taken Yuu to new places, to new hotels, to new restaurants; all to create new memories for him and Yuu only. And Kouyou wasn’t the type of person that replaced things of his past so easily. Kouyou was too sentimental for that – but Christine wouldn’t know that part of him, would she?  
  
Christine gave him one last relieved look, before she turned to look at the window, slowly sipping at the rest of her coffee. Yuu could tell the conversation was over between them. Christine had lost the game, and she was resigned to it. She had only her memories that she shared with Kouyou to keep to herself, to look back on, and that was okay for her. The fight was over.  
  
Yuu managed a tired smile to himself, realizing he had nothing to worry about at all. He used to be so afraid of Christine, so daunted by how pretty and wealthy and intelligent she was. But they were all the same, weren’t they? They held the same fears and insecurities. At the end of it all, they still loved the same person, and wanted to make him happy. All for you, Takashima Kouyou, Yuu thought. If only you knew.  
  
As Yuu took the bus home, though, her words wouldn’t leave his head.  
  
_I’m so jealous, of the way he looks at you and treats you. He looks at photos on his phone, sometimes, and they’re all of you. Even when he was angry with you, he still looked at them. And he still smiled. He still smiled, Yuu._  
  
And Yuu found himself taking his phone out, gazing at the wallpaper he’d set of himself and Kouyou. It was his favourite one, the one where Kouyou’s eyes were looking to him, and only at him, and his lips were pressed up softly against Yuu’s cheek.  
  
_My flower_ , Kouyou had said then.  _You’ll be my princess for the day, for sure._


	37. Chapter 37

The next few days were spent in routine. Yuu was slowly growing resigned to the fact that Kouyou deserved better, so much better than him, and he always felt the guilt wrap around his heart every night before he went to sleep, his wet tears soaking his pillows. He’d stopped sleeping in Yutaka’s arms, and even minimized contact with him now, an action that had only caused the tension in the house to thicken. But Yuu needed time and space to himself, and he made it clear to Yutaka, who agreed quietly, saying he understood that the meeting with Kouyou must have disoriented Yuu’s mind. Yutaka was worried, though. Yuu could see it on his face. Yutaka still made Yuu breakfast and asked about his day, but there was worry apparent on his face.  
   
Yutaka could tell he was losing Yuu, bit by bit. Yuu was slipping back into his former self, and he needn’t Yutaka’s help anymore. Yutaka secretly preferred it when Yuu had been weaker and helpless, constantly craving for Yutaka’s touch. It gave Yutaka opportunities to hold and kiss Yuu in ways he never could, and now he was back to square one.  
   
But Yuu had emphasized that he had needed time all these while, and he wasn’t going back on his word by doing this. Still, the both of them knew where this would eventually lead. Yuu always was an independent person, and he disliked relying on anyone for things – monetary issues aside. If things continued the way they were, things would fall right back to how they used to be, before all this drama started. They would be best friends, again. They’d almost crossed the line, with blurry boundaries, almost hastily entering into a relationship; but now Yuu was picking the line back up and drawing it clearly again. They were going to be best friends again. Nothing more, nothing less.  
   
Yuu spent much more time with Takanori, now. They had even taken to going shopping together, which although wasn’t really much of Yuu’s thing – discounting lingerie shopping, that was – Yuu found himself learning to embrace it the way Takanori loved it, and thought it to be a good way to get to know Takanori deeper. They did always spend most of their time hanging out in university, but rarely outside of class. Sometimes, they spent close to half a day out, and by the time Yuu had gotten back to his apartment, Yutaka was already fast asleep. Yuu did feel bad for leaving Yutaka alone like this, but he couldn’t prance around and let Yutaka kiss him, either, if he had no intention of living out a future with him.  
   
~  
   
Yuu didn’t know how long he planned to continue leading his life like this, but it all came to a stop one afternoon when he’d been having lunch with Takanori as usual, and heard his phone ring.  
   
**_Akira is calling…_**  
   
Yuu’s eyes widened once he came into sight with the vice-president’s name, having never expected to hear from him again. Even Takanori appeared surprised when he took a look at the buzzing phone on the table, wondering why his boyfriend was calling Yuu.  
   
“It’s Akira,” Takanori asked, confused. “Are you going to pick up?”  
   
“Yeah,” Yuu mumbled, slightly hesitant. He hadn’t heard from Akira ever since that day, the one where he had so cruelly rejected Kouyou. Yuu didn’t even know what Akira thought of him now. Did he hate him? What about Kouyou? Was he still… in pain? He would find out, now.  
   
“Yuu,” Akira breathed out, immediately once Yuu picked up his call.  
   
Then even before Yuu had a chance to answer, Akira dropped the bomb. “Yuu, I don’t understand. Why is Yutaka here? In Kouyou’s office? Did you ask him to come?”  
   
Yuu froze, his mouth falling open at the news.  _What?_  What? Yutaka at Kouyou’s place? He couldn’t… This couldn’t be happening just because of Yuu, was it? Had Yuu driven Yutaka berserk with his silence? Yuu knew he was bound to have an effect on Yutaka, but he didn’t think the brunet would resort to  _this_. Yuu hadn’t thought it through at all.  
   
“I don’t… I don’t know,” Yuu whispered, heart paralyzed in fear. “I… really don’t know, Akira. Why is he there? What are they doing?”  
   
Akira sounded tense. “They’re talking. Kouyou’s calm, but Yutaka isn’t. I’m so nervous this will escalate into a fight. Kouyou’s getting aggravated, and he hasn’t been well since that day. He’s been so unstable, Yuu. He’s been mostly quiet, but he still gets angry sometimes. He’s still not eating, and so, so quiet. He won’t talk to me, and I don’t know what’s going on in his head. And now Yutaka is here, and Kouyou had told me he saw you with Yutaka that day. I don’t know if Kouyou will take this well.”  
   
Yuu felt his anxiousness slowly shift to anger, directed more towards Yutaka than anyone else. What business did the brunet have with Kouyou? Why was Yutaka stirring things up again, when Yuu had finally decided he would have nothing to do with Kouyou anymore? He would leave Kouyou alone; he wouldn’t hurt him anymore. Kouyou didn’t deserve getting into any more messes with him.  
   
“I can’t believe Yutaka is doing something like this,” Yuu gritted his teeth, knowing he was going to have to speak to Yutaka about this later. “You have to step in if things get too violent, okay?”  
   
“I will, Yuu, that goes without saying,” Akira replied, his voice amazingly calm, despite the situation. “I won’t let my best friend get hurt by anyone. Kouyou’s already so hurt, after all. There’s only so much he can take.” Yuu felt his heart swell at his words, knowing he had been the main reason Kouyou had been reduced to the state he was today.  
   
“I just wanted to call you up to confirm my suspicions. It looks like Yutaka really did come here of his own accord,” Akira continued, accompanied with a disapproving sigh. “I’ll keep an eye on the both of them. I’ll text you if anything happens, okay?”  
   
“Will you be okay? Do you need me to come over?” Yuu hurriedly asked, frightened of what could happen himself. “I’m so worried, and I don’t know what’s going on.”  
   
“I can handle it,” Akira said sharply, crisp in his reply, and Yuu flinched a little at the bluntness of his answer. Akira probably didn’t trust Yuu to handle things anymore, not after what he’d done to Kouyou. Yuu didn’t blame Akira for thinking so. Akira likely had guessed what Yuu was thinking, and lowered his voice quickly. “I know you’re having lunch with Takanori, he’s been texting me, so don’t leave him alone just for this. I’ll update you again if anything happens, alright?” There was still a certain gentleness to the way he spoke to Yuu, for Akira could never bring himself to treat Yuu too roughly.  
   
“Okay,” Yuu mumbled, feeling upset and useless at the same time. It sucked knowing he was stuck here, when over at the other side of the city, Yutaka was in Kouyou’s office on a high-rise building yelling his face off at Kouyou. Why was Yutaka doing this? What gave him a right to do so? Yuu ended the phone call with Akira, his face painted in severe distress.  
   
Takanori watched him with inquisitive eyes, wondering what was going on. He’d caught bits and pieces from Yuu’s conversation with Akira, and could approximately get a good idea of what had happened, but wasn’t too sure of the details yet. He didn’t want to push Yuu to tell him, though, so he waited, watching as Yuu raked his hand up through his hair and pulled at his strands frustratedly.  
   
“It’s Yutaka,” Yuu finally revealed, sighing, raising his tortured-looking eyes back up to meet Takanori’s ones. “He’s in Kouyou’s office now, apparently. I had no idea about this. I don’t have a good feeling about it, either. Akira tells me that it might escalate into a fight.”  
   
Takanori went silent, deep in thought, and then shook his head as he smiled warmly towards the raven. “Is that it? The two men are fighting over you.”  
   
Yuu cringed at Takanori’s words. “Don’t put it that way. They’re not…  _God,_  I don’t even know what Yutaka is doing there. Kouyou doesn’t even... Kouyou doesn’t even love me anymore.” Because Kouyou couldn’t. Kouyou couldn’t have, not after Yuu had done him too many wrongs. Yuu didn’t deserve his love anymore.  
   
“Is that what you really think?” Takanori asked, frowning. It was the first time they were actually talking about Kouyou again, after a week of silence, and it surprised Yuu as to how good it felt, to finally be talking about his feelings and thoughts on Kouyou again, after such a long while of keeping it all to himself. “Oh, Yuu… You think the worst of everything, don’t you? What made you think Kouyou could so easily lose his love for you?”  
   
Yuu averted his gaze, perplexed. What did Takanori know that he  _didn’t_  know? Perhaps Akira had been telling him things about Kouyou?  
   
“You know very well what I did. I don’t know how Kouyou can stand the sight of me anymore. I don’t think he should.”  
   
“And you’re acting just like Kouyou, now,” Takanori pointed out. “You’re punishing yourself more than your lover will ever punish you. Kouyou’s only so miserable now because he thinks he deserved it. And you’re so miserable now because you think you deserve it, too. But he’s still so in love with you. Akira has to check on him everyday because Kouyou won’t leave his office. I don’t blame him. You’ve spent a great deal of time at his apartment, haven’t you? He’ll only miss you more if he’s lying in an empty bed.”  
   
Guilt flooded Yuu’s eyes at that very thought. Kouyou still missed him? He didn’t show it.  
   
“But he… Kouyou hasn’t contacted me, not even once. If he still loved me, then he would at least…” Yuu sat alone in his bed everyday still waiting for a call, after all. Yuu still waited, despite what his heart might have been telling him about giving up. Yuu wanted to know if Kouyou still missed him, like Yuu did every night.  
   
“You laughed in his face, Yuu,” Takanori remarked, as if stating the obvious, shaking his head. “Kouyou’s heart may be resilient when it comes to love, but he’s not going to try again so soon. You made it clear to him that you were mad at him, and you made him feel pathetic in front of Yutaka. Although I do understand you wanted some form of payback, but… but he was your prince, you know. Kouyou always looked so confident, always so sure of himself. But it isn’t only until now, when I’ve heard about what he’s become after you left him, that I finally see he’s human, still. Kouyou’s scared of being rejected by you again – everyone is. Kouyou’s not used to being rejected, too, so it must have been a big deal for him.”  
   
Yuu glanced down to his food, heavy-hearted. “I didn’t mean to. I… I just wanted,” he enclosed the spoon in his hand in a tight grip. “I just wanted to let him know he hurt me. And that,” Yuu’s eyes fell shut, tired. “He couldn’t get away with that. He broke my heart.”  
   
Takanori looked to him sympathetically. “I don’t think he blames you, Yuu. I’m not blaming you, either. I know why you did it, even if I don’t necessarily agree to it. But who am I to say that I wouldn’t have done the same, if Akira had done the same thing to me and I had gotten a chance to do the same back? But I think you should know that Kouyou has gotten over the anger at you, and he’s only mad at himself now. I’m sure if you just called him up again, he would still tell you he loved you. Everything could still be fine.”  
   
Yuu felt his throat tighten, tears almost prickling at his eyes. “I just don’t know if he should be with me anymore. He deserves so much better. I… don’t want him to be with someone like me anymore, Taka.”  
   
“You don’t mean that,” Takanori frowned, not liking the sound of this.  
   
“I just don’t want to hurt him anymore,” Yuu murmured, disheartened. “And now he’s being hurt by Yutaka. I don’t want to cause Kouyou any more trouble. I don’t think I could even look at Kouyou in the eye anymore, if I ever saw him again. I’m just so sorry about what has happened.”  
   
“He still loves you, you know,” Takanori uttered quietly.  
   
“I know,” Yuu said, his voice strained. “But you can’t have what you want, always, can you? It’s no good for the both of us. I’m just so scared.”  
   
“Scared that you’ll hurt him again, or that he’ll hurt you?” Takanori questioned, sighing.  
   
Yuu’s eyes fluttered to a close. “Both.”  
   
~  
   
_One New Message_  
**_Akira:_** _Yuu… Yuu, Kouyou just stormed out of the office. He’s gone…_  
   
Yuu was never a violent person, he really wasn’t. But the minute he’d passed through the apartment door and caught sight of Yutaka, acting so casually as if he hadn’t just confronted Yuu’s ex-boyfriend, he’d been overcome with rage. He slammed Yutaka right up against the wall, a hand against Yutaka’s chest, and strength he never knew he had came to life as he barked at Yutaka for an explanation.  
   
“What did you say to him?!” Yuu demanded, watching as shock and betrayal pooled right beneath Yutaka’s eyes. Yutaka had never imagined Yuu would treat him like this, all for one man, but Yuu’s grip was tight against his chest, and he had Yutaka backed up against a wall, looking the angriest he’d ever been.  
   
“I told him what he needed to know,” Yutaka hissed, making no move to push Yuu off him just as of yet. For some reason, Yutaka wanted to know how far Yuu would take this to. He wanted to know how much Yuu could break his heart. There was always a first time for everything, wasn’t it? Just when he thought Yuu couldn’t hurt him any deeper than this, Yuu had outdone himself again – and the raven always never knew.  
   
“Like what?!” Yuu bellowed, urgently wanting to know what had gone down between the brunet and the blond. “What did you say to him?!”  
   
“To stay out of our fucking lives!” Yutaka shouted, his bloodshot eyes staring right down into Yuu’s ones. Yuu was beginning to notice the bags underneath Yutaka’s eyes, and registered quietly that the brunet hadn’t been sleeping well, either. “You’re crying every night, Yuu. I  _had_ to do something! You don’t think I can hear you crying over Takashima fucking Kouyou? Oh, the walls are so thin,  _so_ incredibly thin, and I can hear everything. I hear you longing for him. I hear you sobbing for him. Don’t you know how I feel every time I lay down on my pillow and hear you crying for another man?”  
   
Yuu’s hold against Yutaka’s shirt weakened a little, his face slightly ashamed now that he realized he’d been found out. “That gives you no right to confront him about anything. He’s out of both of our lives now.” His tone gradually lowered as he spoke.  
   
“Then why are you avoiding me?” Yutaka asked, a desperate look in his eyes. Late nights of little sleep and complete exhaustion were plain on his face, making him appear to be much older than he really was. “Why are you avoiding me, Yuu? You flinch when I so much as touch you. You’re tossing me away. I can feel it. I can already see it, now. You’re going to leave me alone, to heal my own broken heart.” And he looked so earnestly upset as he said this, Yuu felt his heart smash right into pieces. He’d felt so much guilt for doing this to Yutaka, and to hear the brunet vocalize it right out to him worsened how bad he’d felt about this situation.  
   
“That doesn’t excuse what you did. You had no business looking for Kouyou for anything, and you know it,” Yuu said, mustering up what little anger he’d left to Yutaka. “This isn’t you, Yutaka. You would never have done something like this.”  
   
“You’re right,” Yutaka snapped, hurt. “I’m not like this. And you want to know why I’ve become this fucking way? Because I fell in love with you. We were supposed to have a future together, Yuu. You know we were.”  
   
“Again with the future!” Yuu yelled, the mere mention of it provoking him once more. He couldn’t take it, wouldn’t take it. Couldn’t take Yutaka forcing such an ideal future down his throat, wouldn’t take Yutaka pushing him into a life he didn’t want to lead. He eased his grip completely off Yutaka, backing away from the brunet.  
   
“Stop it! I don’t want to hear any of it!”  
   
His reaction completely ruptured Yutaka’s heart. Yutaka had guessed it all along, that Yuu had changed his mind about being together with Yutaka, but hearing it right from Yuu’s mouth hurt him like never before. Yuu had no desire to partake in his plans for the future at all, and the raven couldn’t have made it anymore obvious over the past week. Yutaka had cried too many nights over this. Yutaka wouldn’t, anymore.  
   
And that was when something snapped, deep right inside of the brunet, all the hurt finally twisting into insanity, after all his heart had been through.  
   
Yutaka gazed to Yuu, at first in anguish and sorrow, but even that slowly morphed into cruel laughter of his own, and blazing eyes that couldn’t see anything else but hatred.  
   
_Yuu can’t love me, so I’ll make him._  
   
“I told Kouyou you loved me,” Yutaka laughed wryly, watching as horror ignited deep within Yuu’s eyes at his words. “That we were so happy together. That he would never have a chance with you again. That you laughed everytime you talked about him. That Kouyou was a pathetic,  _pathetic_  man. And if he knew any better, he would never cross paths with you again. Because how pathetic can he be? Turning up at school and wooing you with roses? Who does he think he is? What a foolish old man. He doesn’t deserve you.”  
   
Yutaka and Christine were the same. Christine had wanted to control Kouyou’s heart, and Yutaka wanted to control Yuu’s. Christine hadn’t taken Kouyou’s feelings into consideration at all, and Yutaka had only been able to see his selfish love for the raven. Was this what Yutaka thought love was? Had his supposed love for Yuu clouded his judgement on what was wrong and what was right?  
   
“You think you can decide for me, who deserves me or not,” Yuu repeated his words back to him, jaw clenching in anger. “You think  _you_ , have the right to decide who I love? Do you really think Kouyou is pathetic, Yutaka? Do you know who truly is the pathetic one, here? Feeding him lies and insults just to demean a man – does that make you feel better about yourself? Does that make you feel superior to Takashima Kouyou?”  
   
“Oh, but I learnt from the best,” Yutaka’s eyes glinted maniacally to Yuu’s, sending Yuu into discomfort immediately. He had never felt more uncomfortable under Yutaka’s gaze. The kindness Yutaka used to have had long faded away; all that replaced it was grudgingness and spite. “Didn’t I? You wanted to prove your worth to Kouyou that day. And you did. You tore that poor man apart. I’m just finishing your job for you.”  
   
Yuu’s heart broke at the sight of how vile Yutaka had become. Did Yuu inadvertently encourage this? Had Yuu helped him turn into the man he was today? The Yutaka he had known before  _wouldn’t_ have done anything of this sort. Where had the awkward, endearing nerd Yuu so loved as a friend gone to?  
   
What had Yuu done to him?  
   
“I’m becoming just like the man you want,” Yutaka answered his thoughts, a deadly smile on his face. “Isn’t it? That’s the kind of man you like. You want a man who has power. You want someone who can show you what you want. You want me to take over.”  
   
“You’re fucking sick in the head,” Yuu spat, enraged that Yutaka was thinking this of him. He couldn’t even recognize the brunet standing in front of him anymore, but Yuu knew it was his fault. He’d been mainly responsible for making Yutaka this way; after all they’d been through.  
   
“You were the one drove me to madness,” Yutaka reminded, snarling right to Yuu’s face. “I loved you so much, but you took me for granted. You always took me for granted. I was always the silly nerdish friend you had who was too easy to use as you pleased, wasn’t I? And you know, I was fine with that. I thought I was. I thought as long as you were happy, everything would be okay. And I could wait for you forever. I would have.  
   
But I can’t take it anymore, Yuu. I lie in bed every fucking night, my heart ripped to pieces, listening to you weep for another man. And when I talk to you in the morning, you speak to me as if I was simply a mere stranger. And I wait for you to come home at night for dinner, but you leave me all alone. I eat alone, feeling unwanted and thrown away. This loneliness is killing me. My broken  _heart_ is killing me. I want Takashima Kouyou to die, Yuu. I  _fucking_ pray for it everyday. I want him to die a horrible death, so you will never get a chance to see him again.”  
   
“Why are you like this?!” Yuu cried out, disturbed by the imagery he’d just painted with his words, taking petrified steps back, further away from the brunet. “Do you think telling Kouyou how much I hated him would make me love  _you_? Has your mind become so twisted to think that would have been your reality? Do you think I can still love you now, after what you’ve become?”  
   
“But you like me like this!” Yutaka howled, stepping forward, closing in on the distance between the both of them. “You like me like this, don’t you?” His bloodshot eyes were widening so much it  _terrified_ the raven. “You said you liked me when I was rich, and well-dressed, and powerful. I can be Takashima Kouyou one day. I  _will_ be better than Takashima Kouyou. I can destroy him, and I can give you everything in the world. You don’t even have to love me as much as I love you, because I know you can’t. You will never be able to. But just tell me you’re willing to stay by my side for the rest of my life,” Yutaka was almost begging, now. “And I will take care of you, Shiroyama Yuu. I have loved you all these time.”  
   
“What… What do you expect me to say?” Yuu whispered, looking up to Yutaka in disgust. “That I forgive you? That I’ve made a mistake? That I won’t think of Takashima Kouyou anymore? That I will love you?”  
   
Yutaka gazed to the side, his face downcast. “Yes.” But they both knew it was already impossible; not after what Yutaka had done.  
   
“I’ve always loved you,” Yuu began, quieter this time, sounding rather fatigued. “You were my bestest friend. I appreciate everything you’ve done for me, I really have. And I may have made some mistakes, and perhaps I shouldn’t have said the things I had said to you. But you and I both know we were never meant to work out. Perhaps in another life, but not this one. I feel nothing romantic for you. I thought I could, but I really can’t. I’ve tried, Yutaka. But I can’t imagine a life with you. I can’t imagine waiting for my doctor husband to come home from work everyday. I can’t imagine asking you about your patients and your work everyday. I can’t picture myself being happy with you.”  
   
Tears welled up in Yutaka’s eyes then and there, Yuu’s every word fragmenting his heart to bits. “But I can.” Yutaka didn’t think his heart could break anymore, but Yuu proved him wrong. Yuu always proved him wrong.  
   
“I know you can,” Yuu had to contain the tears that were almost falling from his eyes as well, knowing just how hard it was for Yutaka to accept this truth. Yutaka had done so much for him, and he knew just how fucking exhausted Yutaka was, to have put in so much work and gotten nothing in return. “I know you can, sweetheart. I know you want it so much.”  
   
“I do, and I tried so hard,” Yutaka gasped, struggling to find breath as his throat clenched under him, his mind in an intense whirlwind. His shoulder shook, overcome with sadness, and all the anger he’d held before completely dissipated away. He just wanted Yuu to hear him out, this one last time. “I tried so hard and I waited so long. And I thought I would finally have my chance now. I really did. I thought you were going to love me. You still can, Yuu. Please. Just give me one chance.”  
   
“Please don’t change because of me,” Yuu said, even as Yutaka took Yuu’s hands into his, the brunet’s eyes pleading. “Yutaka, please, let’s just go back to how things were, okay? I don’t need you to be Takashima Kouyou. I want my Tanabe Yutaka.”  
   
“I don’t want things to go back to how they were,  _please_ ,” Yutaka sobbed, entirely and wholesomely frightened, now. He didn’t want things to go back. He was already halfway there, slowly turning into the type of man Yuu always seemed to fall in love with. Yutaka just needed a little more time to be  _that_ , and then Yuu would fall into his arms. “I’ll never get this chance again. I’ve come so close, and now you’re telling me they had all been lies. You don’t know how much you’re breaking my heart. Can’t you feel it shattering? It beats just for you, and now you’re telling me it never had a reason to beat at all.”  
   
“Yutaka, please,” Yuu said in a murmur. He had to go.  
   
“Please, Yuu,” Yutaka replied, clutching Yuu’s hands tighter within his palms.  
   
Yuu saw no other way out. Actions always spoke louder than words, didn’t they? And that was then Yuu leaned over and kissed him. Gently, softly. Their lips touched, their breaths warm against each other’s skin. They didn’t do anything else. They stayed rooted, their dry lips pressed lightly against each other’s.  
   
There was no emotion to the kiss whatsoever. Yuu felt nothing. And Yutaka must have felt it, too, for the brunet made no move to deepen the kiss at all. The house was completely quiet. Their hearts stilled in the silence. There was nothing beautiful about the moment at all.  
   
Yuu pulled away a mere few seconds after, when Yutaka had released his grip against Yuu’s hands, after having gone into shock from the kiss.  
   
“Did you feel it?” Yuu asked, softly, almost apologetically.  
   
Yutaka’s eyes lowered. “Feel… what?”  
   
“We aren’t made for each other,” Yuu answered, though he had an inkling that Yutaka already understood. “There was nothing.”  
   
Yutaka went silent. Yuu knew the revelation must have come as a huge blow to the brunet, who had poured so much of his heart into pursuing the raven.  
   
“That will be our future, Yutaka,” Yuu continued, sighing. “Bleak, empty. Without a single trace of feeling. Are you in love with me, or are you just afraid I won’t need you anymore after I’ve fallen in love with someone? Did you just like the feeling of me in your arms, relying on you, and did you mistake it for love?”  
   
Yutaka looked so confused, so weak, at that moment that Yuu felt truly sorry for him. He must be doubting every single thing he’d ever felt and thought about the raven now.  
   
“We love each other, there’s no denying it. We care so much for each other. But maybe not in the way you thought we had to be, Yutaka. We don’t have to be in a relationship to care for each other so much. And… I think too much has happened between us, and we need to move on,” Yuu regrettably informed.  
   
“What do you mean?” Yutaka asked, suddenly looking so frightened it broke Yuu’s heart.  
   
“I’ll find another place. We… shouldn’t stay together, anymore,” Yuu said quietly.  
   
“You’ll leave me?” Yutaka whispered, crushed.  
   
“I have to,” Yuu firmly answered.  
   
They had to move on to the next chapter of their lives, and leave this painful one behind.  
   
Yutaka hung his head low, knowing he was in no position to stop Yuu from doing so. “I…” Yutaka began, and Yuu was slightly afraid Yutaka would protest, even after what Yuu had just showed him. But the brunet didn’t, and Yuu watched as tears slid down Yutaka’s face as he struggled to accept the reality he’d been so badly trying to evade. He couldn’t deny it anymore, though. Not after this. Not after everything.  
   
“I can’t stop you, if that’s… what you want.” Yutaka still wasn’t so sure what he wanted, anymore, but he knew he would go along with what Yuu wanted if it made the raven happy. And he realized that was all he wanted, anyway. All he cared about was making the one he loved happy.   
   
“I’ll come back to see you, definitely,” Yuu promised quickly, wanting to show Yutaka that nothing would change between them, no matter what. That brought a small, bittersweet smile to Yutaka’s face.  
   
“I will miss you,” was all he said.  
   
Yuu hadn’t realized it, but tears had long rolled down his face, staining his own cheeks.  
   
“I’m so sorry things ended up this way,” Yuu breathed out, pulling Yutaka into his arms for one last embrace.  
   
And they both cried until sundown, until all that were left of their tears was a silent, throbbing heartache that lingered deep within their chests, never going away.  
   
This chapter of their life had closed, alright. It had finally closed, after everything they’d been through, and it allowed Yuu to see a little ray of light at long last, after weeks of internalizing his guilt and self-hate. Yuu finally understood what he wanted, now. And that was to be truly happy with himself, and own up to all of his mistakes, no longer staying the petrified kitten that always needed arms around him to shelter him.  
   
Yuu was going to be strong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My recommended song for this chapter is Under The Sheets / Ellie Goulding :>
> 
> .........hello there. I am back! It has been 3 weeks since my last update... :D ~~please spare my life~~ Good news, I finally am done with my commitments (well, most of them) sooo expect the next update or two in the next few days again. :D I will be making up for lost time!
> 
> These two chapters are SO crazily emotionally charged. I don't know if it's just me, but I felt even more emotionally charged than when I was writing Kouyou and Yuu's break-up?!?! Maybe it's because I wrote the break-up so long ago so I might have missed the feeling. But you finally get to see Christine's side of things here, and also how Yutaka has gone slightly mad from his love -- the poor thing. He's supposed to play the villain, but his plight is so understandable. I wanted to make him hateful, but I can't. His emotions can be so easily explained, after all. What I really am happy about is that Yuu is learning so many things from all these confrontations. He's growing to be his own person, and he's admitting up to his mistakes. The only issue left he hasn't resolved would be the one with his prince charming <3
> 
> And Kouyou has disappeared from these two chapters, but don't worry, he will be back in the next. <3 
> 
> I am sooo excited to hear your thoughts on what has happened so far. Do let me know :D See you again soon! (And I mean it this time with 'soon').


	38. Chapter 38

Yuu moved out from Yutaka’s place soon after. Fortunately for him, Takanori had an available space in his flat, since his roommate had moved out himself not too long ago. So Yuu was grateful to occupy the space, since the raven had been worried about how long it would have taken him to find a new apartment, as well as finding the right person to room with. Yuu’s share of the rental fee was also cheaper than when he’d stayed with Yutaka, but this was also because Takanori’s flat was slightly smaller than Yutaka’s apartment, too.  
  
Yuu didn’t mind the smaller space. Yuu had never been picky with how big or small the place was, since Yuu never did have many possessions he kept to himself, anyway. He did have many gifts attained from his sugar daddies, however, and thought to himself whilst packing that he would ask if Takanori wanted them later. He often got branded possessions and goods that he saw no use for, since he mainly cared about his payout, and only accepted such lavish gifts because he knew it symbolized the amount of adoration these men held for him, and to reject these tokens of appreciation would humiliate and make them lose their pride.  
  
Kouyou’s gifts he kept, though. Kouyou’s gifts, and his scarf – which Yuu still wore on a daily basis, always wrapping it snugly around his neck, close to his heart. It was probably all in Yuu’s head, but the raven swore he could still smell Kouyou’s scent sometimes, within the sheer fabric of the beautiful mint-colored scarf. It made no sense, since it was never Kouyou’s possession to begin with, but Yuu had worn it too many times while out on dates with Kouyou, and the older man had always complimented how gorgeous the color looked against Yuu’s skin. Yuu never wanted to throw it away. He always kept it close to him, even when he was sleeping, since it brought to him a sense of comfort like none other. Kouyou wasn’t here lying next to him anymore, and this was all Yuu had left to remember him by.  
  
Yuu had changed his phone’s wallpaper, too. It’d pained Yuu to do so, but he knew it had to be done. He couldn’t continue gazing upon Kouyou’s face, and how happy he’d looked whilst kissing him, without feeling his heart sink down into his chest. Yuu could have had all of that. But he couldn’t, anymore, and he had to move on.  
  
Yuu had stopped sugar dating as well. He’d accumulated a fair amount of savings from all of his previous payments from his sugar daddies, especially Kouyou who’d been extremely generous with him, and Yuu’s university loan was more or less settled, with even a good amount of money left for his own needs. Yuu was conservative with his money, though. He knew it was hard-earned money that didn’t come by easily – Yuu had to spend many long nights with unattractive, ill-mannered men who only cared about their own desires and never Yuu’s – and Yuu wasn’t sure if he ever wanted to take up sugar dating again. Not after the mess it’d brought to his life so far, and not after meeting Kouyou. Yuu wasn’t sure he could spend another night with a wealthy man that  _wouldn’t_ remind him of how he used to spend his time with Kouyou, and so Yuu decided perhaps he would stay out of that circle for a while. Older, powerful men were always bad news, in one way or another. Die had been a perfectly good example.  
  
As for Kouyou, the last Yuu had heard from Akira was that he’d taken off. The CEO he’d so intensely loved was gone. The day after Yutaka had confronted him personally in the office, the blond informed Akira that he’d booked a one way ticket to Europe, since he’d begun liaising with businesses there anyway, and wouldn’t be back until he’d finished settling his work over there. It was clear to everyone that Kouyou no longer wanted to stay in this city, this place, that held too many painful memories for him. Kouyou still managed the corporation from where he was at Europe, and he skyped Akira frequently to check in on the company, but Akira was mainly put in-charge in Kouyou’s place for now, executing out all of Kouyou’s decisions.  
  
Takanori would inform Yuu every single time Akira was on the phone with Kouyou, asking Yuu if he had anything to say to the blond CEO; but Yuu always declined to pass on any message to him. Kouyou had hurt enough, and Yuu wanted to absent himself from his life. He wondered how Kouyou was coping, though. He wondered if Kouyou had begun eating right, begun sleeping right, and most of all he wondered if Kouyou had already found someone else.  
  
The only thing that Yuu was sure of was that Kouyou must have taken off, still thinking that the raven-haired detested him with his whole guts. Yuu’s only regret was that he never had a chance to apologize to Kouyou for what he did to him, just so the both of them could receive the closure they wanted and move on with their lives. And then perhaps Yuu wouldn’t still go to bed every night with an empty heart, wondering if Kouyou had already found someone to replace him in his arms. But Yuu had reached a decision to stay away from the blond, and he would stick to it. Neither Akira nor Takanori attempted to stop him from his decision, knowing that this matter between him and Kouyou was something they couldn’t interfere with. Takanori simply stuck to his job as a good friend and kept Yuu company on nights he felt lonely, whereas Akira called up Kouyou regularly to make sure the blond was okay, and that he hadn’t jumped off a window yet out of heartbreak and grief.  
  
Although Takanori and Akira knew themselves just how much those two still loved each other, considering Yuu and Kouyou still slept so badly every night they were apart – they couldn’t force either of them to step up and make amends. It had to be something done of their own accord, so that the intention was real and genuine from their end. And they were sure that the day would soon come where Yuu and Kouyou would meet again, and be forced to own up to what they’d tried so hopelessly to leave behind. It was impossible for them to find someone else to love anytime soon, when their hearts still despaired and longed for each other.  
  
Yuu no longer saw Yutaka anymore. It was a huge step, to go from seeing him everyday for two years, to suddenly ceasing all contact with him, but Yuu knew it was for the best. He’d promised Yutaka that he would drop by and see him, once their hearts had long been healed and they were ready to re-new their friendship again, and Yutaka had understood; but it was still such a huge difference. It felt strange, at first, not to come home to a medical student that buried his nose in books, or to Yutaka’s delicious home-cooked food for lunch, but Yuu knew he couldn’t have had it any other way.  
  
Takanori was not so bad a replacement, and he really was thankful for Takanori’s friendship. The man truly cared for him, and had slowly become a confidante that Yuu could place his trust in. Yuu used to only be able to tell things to Yutaka, and he’d been afraid that without Yutaka, Yuu wouldn’t have anyone else to rely on, but Takanori proved him wrong. Now, not only did they spend their classes together, but also virtually all of their free time, and sometimes – if Yuu was feeling up to it – Takanori would invite Yuu out with him and Akira, just so Yuu wouldn’t be left home alone. Yuu was never made to feel like he was an outsider when he went out with them, for Takanori and Akira always included Yuu in their conversations, in on their inside jokes and laughter, and always made sure Yuu never felt left out.  
  
Yuu really did appreciate their inclusiveness, though he still made sure to reject Takanori’s invitations to go out with them on some occasions, knowing that they were a couple and they were bound to prefer one-on-one time with each other, after all. Even if Takanori didn’t mind Yuu hanging out with them all the time, there was no telling Akira wouldn’t mind it at all. Takanori was oblivious to the romantic signals Akira sent him sometimes, even if Yuu couldn’t blame him for it. It’d taken Yuu several months of dating older men, on an everyday basis, before he started to be receptive of their body cues, understanding what they wanted with every look they flashed upon this way.  
  
Kouyou used to be  _so_ obvious, too. Although Kouyou always looked at Yuu lovingly, tenderly, as if nothing else ever mattered to him in the world but Yuu, there were also times where Kouyou looked to Yuu as if he were a hungry wolf, like a predator eyeing its prey. It was too easy to tell when Kouyou wanted to devour him, and when Kouyou simply wanted to embrace him and cuddle with him in bed, instead. Yuu had to say, though, that if it were up to the blond, Kouyou wouldn’t have minded devouring him  _all_ the time. But that was only Kouyou. And Kouyou was always such a pervert.  
  
Yuu did miss the older man. He missed him so terribly much, and on some nights Yuu lay wide awake in bed, wondering if he’d made the wrong decision to stay away from him. Nevertheless, there was nothing he could do to turn back time. Yuu could have been upfront with Kouyou about his arrangements with several other sugar daddies from the start, but he didn’t. Yuu could have explained his side of the story, convinced Kouyou to stay, but he didn’t. Yuu could have accepted Kouyou’s apology when he turned up to see him, but he didn’t.  
  
Yuu could still tell Kouyou he loved him, but he wouldn’t.  
  
~  
  
A month soon passed since he’d moved into Takanori’s place, and things had quickly fallen into pattern. Yuu was almost surprised how fast he’d adapted to this new life of his, when things had been so different not too long ago.  
  
The both of them were currently on break, and had taken up a new interest in the art of baking. It’d all happened when they were watching television, bored out of their minds one rainy afternoon, and the cooking program that usually aired for domestic housewives to watch suddenly came on, sparking Takanori and Yuu’s interest in baking spontaneously.  
  
Takanori thought it would be a good idea to bake some muffins, so he could deliver them to Akira’s workplace later. He’d been preparing lunch for Akira sometime now, in the form of adorable lunch boxes, and although Yuu found it cute, Yuu was also envious of his friend. He’d wanted this to be  _his_  daily routine, too. Yuu had wanted to stay at home and prepare home-made lunches for Kouyou all the time, just so the blond could have a part of Yuu close to him, even when he was at the office. It would be a lot of work, definitely, having to wake up early, as well as constantly fretting over what food he’d have to prepare for Kouyou for the new day, but it would all be worth it once Yuu saw how happy it made Kouyou.  
  
That day, Takanori and Yuu had woken up bright and early in the morning, excited to try out the new muffin recipes they’d gathered from their online research. They’d spent the whole of yesterday deciding on ingredients at their local supermarket, and Takanori even got them frilly white aprons to wear whilst baking. Yuu tried to dissuade Takanori from them, preferring the plain, darker blue ones instead, but the man was firm on his decision, and said they had an image to uphold, even while cooking. Yuu was helpless when it came to changing Takanori’s mind – he was so stubborn sometimes.  
  
And so, after pouring their heart and sweat out into baking those muffins, they pushed their hard work into the oven and waited for it to be ready. Takanori looked at the time, saw that it would be almost noon, and hurried to the television, turning it on. Tugging Yuu along by the arm, Takanori seated the both of them down before the television set, excitedly telling Yuu of a program he’d been meaning to watch.  
  
Yuu was bewildered, especially when Takanori grabbed for the remote control and pressed for the business news channel, a channel that both of them rarely watched. But Takanori was brimming with enthusiasm, the most excited he’d ever been in awhile, and Yuu couldn’t find it in him to protest, so he simply smiled and sat back against the sofa, wondering if a favourite celebrity of Takanori’s was being interviewed on air.  
  
_“…And now, we have Takashima Kouyou on air with us! Now, this up-and-coming CEO has been making waves in the industry for a while now, having proved critics wrong time after time again, despite his young age. Can you believe he’s only thirty-five? In today’s intensely competitive arena, career success requires much more than brains, skills and perseverance. Today, Kouyou will be sharing with us how he…”_  
  
Yuu was dead wrong.  
  
~  
  
“It’s him,” Takanori gushed, almost like an overly excited fangirl. He darted his eyes to Yuu, mentally gauging his reaction. “Kouyou’s on air.”  
  
Yuu was in shock. He hadn’t seen his ex-lover for close to a month, and here he was, on television, smiling to the camera like nothing had ever happened.  
  
Kouyou looked so…  _alive_. And so, so different from the Kouyou Yuu had last seen. It was him Yuu was seeing now, the Kouyou that Yuu had first met, on their very first date, driving up to him in his black Lamborghini, rolling down his window and asking him to get in. It was him, the Kouyou that took him out to the nice Japanese restaurant, chuckling at Yuu’s shyness, speaking in that refined manner of his, utterly polite and respectful to the raven. It was the Kouyou that peppered Yuu with kisses, and flowers, and took him out shopping for overpriced clothes; it was the Kouyou that had treated Yuu so gently, so kindly, the one that had been so in love.  
  
It was Yuu’s Kouyou. It was the man he fell in love with.  
  
The blond’s eyes looked brighter, now. Those eyes gleamed under the harsh lights of the studio, looking full of promise and hope. His pale blond hair – that used to run down his neck – had been slightly trimmed and shortened, showing off his strong, angular jawline, giving him an even more matured look than before. Clothed in a low V-neck black shirt, a long necklace with a cross hanging down his chest, along with a dark, sleek blazer worn over; Yuu thought Kouyou looked more like a model, rather than the CEO of a huge business corporation.  
  
He could hear Takanori clucking his tongue at the sight of Kouyou’s dressing, approving of Kouyou’s fashion choices, and Yuu found himself mentally agreeing too, wondering if Kouyou had been styled by a professional before he went on air. He probably did. Yuu had always thought Kouyou was handsome, but this,  _this_ … Kouyou had never looked as good as _this_. The eyebags were gone, his face had regained its natural shape, and he’d lost the ghastly, hollow appearance he used to have, back when he’d been starving himself.  
  
Kouyou had been working out, too. The rolled up sleeves were a testament to that. His blazer  _even_ looked slightly tight around his shoulders, but it only served to further sweeten the delicious sight. Kouyou wasn’t naturally heavily built, and could have ended up skinny if he hadn’t taken good care of himself, but the CEO definitely showed that he’d paid regular visits to the gym to achieve the succulent muscles evident on his arms. Yuu could feel just how strong and sturdy they were already, always wrapping around Yuu’s slender body. Yuu couldn’t help but wrap his own arms around himself at that very thought, wishing Kouyou’s arms could have been here to do their job instead. Kouyou always made him feel so safe and protected in his arms. Yuu missed that the most.  
  
To go from someone who hadn’t been eating, hadn’t been sleeping, hadn’t even been going home of late; to someone with a cocky smile on his face, his dark eyes looking straight to the camera, his body sitting upright against the studio’s sofa, his upper body leaning forward and his legs slightly spread – Yuu wondered if this meant that Kouyou had moved on completely from him. Because if Kouyou still missed him, he wouldn’t look so proud, wouldn’t he? If Kouyou still longed for him, he wouldn’t be eating right, he wouldn’t look so…  _happy_. Or had Kouyou already gotten used to a life without Yuu, finally realizing that the raven had been a complete waste of his time? Had Kouyou moved on so quickly?  
  
“He looks great, doesn’t he?” Takanori asked, attempting to stir some sort of reaction out of the raven. It worried him a little to see Yuu so quiet, since he’d expected a much bigger emotional response from the raven. Yuu had been remaining silent for the past ten minutes now, mentally trying to digest the sight of Kouyou, and how great and healthy he looked. It wasn’t as if Yuu was unhappy that Kouyou was well again, that Kouyou was back to his old self; but it led Yuu to wonder if Kouyou had left Yuu behind in his past, too, just like another Christine, to get to his mental state today.  
  
“He does,” Yuu agreed quietly, his eyes riveted to the sight of his ex-boyfriend answering every one of the interviewer’s questions so confidently, so assertively. Kouyou always knew how to conduct himself in a professional manner in these sorts of settings, and it showed. The man certainly had social skills, something you  _had_ to have to establish contacts and climb up to the top in this business, and it made Yuu frown when he reflected back on himself. Kouyou was everything Yuu was not.  
  
Kouyou wasn’t only a charismatic speaker, but he was extremely well educated, too. Sometimes Yuu forgot this fact about him, especially since it wasn’t something that factored heavily in their relationship. Kouyou stayed away from topics Yuu didn’t understand often, but Yuu realized now he should have indulged Kouyou in at least a few conversations on what he did, for Yuu had not a single clue as to the lingo Kouyou was using now, on national television, speaking passionately about his career and his own predictions for next movements in the industry.  
  
“I always forget they’re so smart,” Takanori whispered, staring to the television in awe. “Akira’s so dumb sometimes, I always forget how much he’s actually paid and the reason he’s paid so much. He’s not vice-president for nothing, you know. And Kouyou’s the CEO for a reason, too. I still can’t believe you dated that man. He’s so amazing! I totally have no idea what he’s saying.”  
  
“I can’t believe I dated him, too,” Yuu said with a soft sigh, marveling at how attractive Kouyou could look, even when he was being engaged heatedly in such a serious, technical discussion. Kouyou could talk about anything and he would still look so,  _so_ … hot. It was unfair, how drop-dead gorgeous Kouyou was. Not only in his looks, but also in the self-assured manner he carried himself as well. Kouyou was the whole package.  
  
It made him sad, though. Yuu was remembering how much he was missing the blond again, and the knowledge that Kouyou was doing so well without him by his side lowered Yuu’s spirits. Yuu still couldn’t sleep well at night, and to do so he had to clutch the mint scarf Kouyou had gifted him close to him. Kouyou, on the other hand, looked as if he hadn’t gone through a sleepless night at all. Yuu felt his heart drop to his stomach as he continued staring at the screen, his hands trembling at that very thought. Kouyou didn’t look like he needed Yuu anymore.  
  
“Look, look! The fun part’s coming,” Takanori suddenly cried out, tugging at Yuu’s arm happily. Yuu frowned, unable to understand why Takanori was so excited, and tried to regain his focus. The interviewer – a pleasant-looking lady dressed in a black formal suit, complete with a blazer and pencil skirt – was readying herself to ask the next question to Kouyou, a mischevious smile playing upon her ruby red lips.  
  
_“Of course, with all of your success, the interest in your private life has been soaring as well. Considering you’ve just gotten back from your month-long business trip to Europe, am I right to guess that you must have met some mind-blowing beauties while you were there? You are a bachelor, aren’t you?”_  
  
Yuu didn’t  _even_  want to hear Kouyou’s answer. Did Takanori love gossip so much to the point where he’d enjoy gossip that was only going to hurt his friend? Yuu couldn’t take the thought of Kouyou holding someone else in his arms, he really couldn’t. Yuu couldn’t stand the thought of having been wholesomely replaced at all.  
  
_“I’m single, yes.”_ And Kouyou looked so smug saying that too, that bastard. Yuu turned his eyes away from the screen, grinding his teeth irately together. What did Yuu think Kouyou would have replied? That he was still in love with Yuu?  
  
_“But to be truthful with you, this hasn’t solely been a business trip. I had just broken up with the love of my life at that time, and was using this opportunity to get away from it all. Contrary to popular belief, CEOs are human and have to deal with heartbreaks, too.”_  
  
Kouyou gave a bitter laugh then. Wait… Was he talking about Yuu? Yuu’s heart leaped, hearing Kouyou refer to him as ‘the love of his life’. Did Kouyou really think that of him, even up till now?  
  
_“Who in the right mind would break up with you? Takashima Kouyou is one of the nation’s most sought after bachelors. We’ve recently done a poll on our website and you turned up in the top ten!”_  
  
_“You know, thinking back on it now, it wasn’t anyone’s fault. If anything, it was mine. I was the one that drove him away. I wouldn’t blame him for anything in the world. Unfortunately, I couldn’t see that a month ago. I was angry, and I was reckless, and I said some things I hadn’t meant. And now I can’t take any of it back. I just wish he could know.”_  
  
_I know now._ Yuu hadn’t realized this yet, but he’d unconsciously raised his hands up to cup them over his mouth by this point in time, muffling his surprised shrieks of delight. Kouyou… Kouyou wasn’t mad at him at all. Kouyou had forgiven him long ago. Kouyou  _even_ thought it was his fault, that he had been responsible for their messy break-up. But most importantly, Kouyou didn’t hate him. And Kouyou never did.  
  
_“I’m sure he’ll know now, now that you’re broadcasting it on national television! Well, would this mean that you haven’t had a change of heart, after all these time? Perhaps the beauties you met in Europe couldn’t sway you at all?”_  
  
_“No,”_ A deep draw of breath. A hopeful, longing smile. A twinkle in the eye.  _“I’ve never met anyone quite like him. His beautiful eyes have never left my mind. The way he always laughed so softly, clinging onto me like he needed nothing else but me. The way his dark hair fell to the sides as he turned to look at me whenever I called for him. The way he would pretend he was mad at me for teasing him, but then look so upset when I stopped doing so. The way he fell asleep in my arms. The rhythm in which he breathed. I’ll never find someone else who could make me this happy. I’ll never find someone that could make me forget everything else like he did.”_  
  
_“Do you mean to say that you still love him, then? Is this a public confession to him?”_  
  
Yuu held his very breath then, waiting for Kouyou’s answer.  
  
_“It is. I still love him. And I want to tell him that I’ve come back, a new, better me, and I will do anything within my power to make things right again. No matter what. I will do anything to make him happy again. I love you, Yuu. I’ve never stopped loving you.”_  
  
Yuu still wasn’t breathing. Tears of relief had gathered around his eyes halfway through, and he’d gone completely speechless from the things he’d just heard. Kouyou meant it, Yuu could feel it sincerely from the deepest depths of his heart. Kouyou had meant those words, and even though Kouyou was still staring to the camera, a sheepish smile on his face, Yuu had never felt closer to the blond.  
  
They were separated by a screen, but Yuu didn’t need to see or hear anything more to affirm Kouyou’s love for him. It just was. And Kouyou had made that very clear on national television. There was nothing else that could get more romantic than this. Kouyou had outdone himself, again and again, and Yuu completely didn’t know what to do anymore. Yuu hadn’t expected Kouyou to come back for him at all, much less still harbor feelings for him, even after all that Yuu had done to him. But Kouyou’s love proved to be everlasting, to be undying, to be infinite. Yuu couldn’t have fallen in love with a better man.  
  
Yuu wanted him back so,  _so_ much.  
  
“Are you happy?” Takanori eagerly asked, looking to him expectantly. Yuu suddenly remembered Takanori had been the main reason the television was switched on in the first place, and narrowed his eyes to him – albeit with a grateful smile.  
  
“You knew what was going to happen!” Yuu exclaimed, in disbelief of how Takanori could have possibly kept this a secret from him. How did Takanori resist the urge to let this slip to the raven all these while? He was always so fond of gossip.  
  
“I might have known about this taping in advance, but I’ve always known that Kouyou still loved you,” Takanori laughed. “And you still do, for him, too. I wasn’t going to push you guys to do anything, though. But I knew you wouldn’t budge, not unless Kouyou made the first move. You have too much pride for that. And Kouyou… Well, let’s just say, Akira has been subtlely leaving hints around that Kouyou should be getting his ass off and doing something about you. It took Kouyou a month, but he’s finally ready, now. And I think you’re ready, too.”  
  
Yuu was going to torment him with further questions on how long these plans had been going on behind his back, but the ringing of the doorbell interrupted him from doing so. Takanori just stared to him with a crazed grin, cocking his head over to the direction of the door.  
  
“Looks like we have a delivery man,” Takanori announced loudly, making no move to get the door himself. Yuu frowned, already suspecting something else was in the works, and got off the sofa. Taking careful steps towards the front door, Yuu readied himself for even more surprises, and sucked in a huge breath, pulling the door open.  
  
…It was Takashima  _fucking_  Kouyou.  
  
Yuu’s legs almost gave way at the sight. Was this really happening?  
  
Kouyou stood before him, a shy smile on his face, dressed exactly as how he’d done so for the interview. And in his hands held a bouquet of blood-red roses, the ones Yuu never failed to receive from him. Kouyou never forgot those.  
  
_God_ , Kouyou looked so handsome, even more so in the flesh, and it’d been so long, a full month, since Yuu had last seen him. Compared to the gaunt Kouyou Yuu had seen last,  _this_ Kouyou was the one that had pinned him against the bed, his ripped body holding Yuu right down.  _This_ was the Kouyou that always peppered Yuu with kisses, and flowers, and murmured sweet-nothings in his ear. This was the Kouyou that had come back for him. This was the Kouyou Yuu dreamt about. And Yuu could even smell the familiar odour of his musky cologne; the one that always clouded his senses and drowned him in the smell of sex.  
  
It was the perfect moment, really. His ex-lover had finally come to see him after a month-long absence, looking like a million bucks, holding a bouquet of roses in his hands, desperately seeking for Yuu’s forgiveness again. Yuu was unable to believe his eyes, and he gawked at Kouyou for a good, long second, wondering if this was all really just in his head. And so Yuu did something any logical person would have done in his place.  
  
Yuu slammed the door right back into Kouyou’s face.  
  
~  
  
Silence ensued for a full second, everyone having gone into shock. Takanori stared at Yuu, his jaw wide open, whereas Yuu stared to the door, his heart thumping madly against his chest. Outside the door, Kouyou stood still, his hopeful smile dissolving quickly into a frown.  
  
And then Takanori was getting onto his feet, yelling agitatedly to his raven-haired friend.  
  
“Shiroyama Yuu! Whaaat the fuuuck! Did you just slam the door in Takashima Kouyou’s face?!”  
  
_Gee, Takanori, thanks for stating the obvious,_  Yuu thought.  
  
“I…” Yuu tried to vocalize his thoughts, but found his throat coming up dry. This was  _way_ too much for him to take, all in the span of an hour. Just this morning, he’d woken up, expecting to only make muffins for the day. Fast-forward several hours later, and Kouyou had declared his love for him on national television,  _then_ turned up at his doorstep, looking like a lost puppy, as if he was hoping his owner would finally take him home.  
  
Everything was too good to be true. Someone, pinch him,  _please_.  
  
“He’s really here?” Yuu asked, heart still hammering loudly in his chest.  
  
“Yes, Yuu,” Takanori huffed, slightly impatient. He still hadn’t gotten the touching reunion scene that he so wanted. “He is.”  
  
“But he… he was in Europe, and…” Yuu was still in disbelief. He hadn’t thought Kouyou would come back so soon. He hadn’t thought Kouyou would come back at all.  
  
“Shiroyama. Yuu.” Takanori warned, his voice almost threatening. “I know you’re in shock, but for the love of god… Open the damn door! Kouyou’s waiting for you outside! The poor man must be wondering what he’d done wrong again! Are you going to let him go again?”  
  
Let Kouyou go again?  
  
No. No, Yuu wasn’t.  _No_ , because Yuu had spent too many nights going to sleep with a broken heart, to afford allowing Kouyou to slip through his fingers again.  _No_ , because Yuu still ached for the man with every inch of his soul, and he would have done anything to tell Kouyou he hadn’t meant it, he hadn’t meant the  _I don’t know him_ s at all.  _No_ , because even if Yuu hadn’t ever thought he would ever see Kouyou again, there was a part of Yuu that had still been waiting, all month long.  _No_ , because Yuu was stronger now. Stronger than he ever was before. Revenge didn’t matter to him anymore, nor vengeance, nor retaliation. And Yuu could make things right, if only Kouyou would let him.  
  
And now Kouyou was finally back, finally home, and Yuu couldn’t ever let him go again.  
  
So, it was with that final thought that gave the raven the courage to pull open the front door once more. Kouyou’s face couldn’t get anymore transparent. The worried creases on Kouyou’s forehead finally relaxed, realizing that Yuu wasn’t going to ignore him after all, even after having come all the way here. The older man stepped up, grasping the bouquet of roses tight in his hands, an apologetic smile on his face.  
  
_God,_ Kouyou was always so,  _so_  drop-dead gorgeous.  
  
“Yuu, I just wanted to say I still–”  
  
But Yuu didn’t need to even hear another word. He’d already tipped up on his toes, and leaned up to capture Kouyou’s lips with his.  
  
And for the first time in a month, their hearts had finally begun beating as one again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My recommended song for this chapter is How To Get The Girl / Taylor Swift :>
> 
>  **PS:** This is how I envision Kouyou to look like now (but blond) --> [image](http://38.media.tumblr.com/9c7f7dcc10ff00c1ee15e7eec7ecf493/tumblr_inline_nbnhwuAOZU1rfr5v5.jpg)


	39. Chapter 39

The bouquet had long been tossed to the ground. Kouyou smelled so good,  _god_ , so clean-shaven, so fresh scented, so perfect. His rough palms had threaded their way through Yuu’s hair, gently tugging at the strands as he delved further into the kiss. Yuu’s eyelids had fallen to a close, basking in the feeling of Kouyou’s lips against his, and the older man’s skilled tongue, exploring the cavern of his mouth urgently. They hadn’t kissed for so long, and it almost felt like Kouyou was kissing him so desperately, so fervently, just to remind himself how it used to be, just to reassure himself that nothing had changed after all, just to affirm to himself that this was indeed the beautiful raven-haired he’d fallen in love with, the one whose body he’d memorized long ago with every inch and detail. And Yuu knew he wanted to make up for lost time, too. Kouyou wanted to make up for all the days they’d been apart from each other, their mouths absent against each other’s skin, their heartbeats having lost track of each other’s rhythm.  
  
Kouyou wasn’t forceful at all. Their kiss might have been sloppy, hasty, saliva trickling down the sides of their lips, but the older man was holding Yuu with such great care, the raven could melt into his arms right then and there. Their breaths were hot against each other, and Yuu could feel every gasp and groan Kouyou was making, his body almost shuddering from the intensity of the kiss.  
  
Kouyou didn’t have to say it – Yuu already felt it. How much Kouyou had missed him. How much Kouyou had loved him. How much Kouyou was sorry for having hurt Yuu in ways he hadn’t meant to, and how much he was going to make up for it. But with every apology that he spelled out with his tongue, Yuu kissed hurriedly back and showed Kouyou it didn’t matter. Yuu had forgiven him so long ago. Yuu had forgiven himself, too, for everything he’d done. And Yuu had only needed to know that Kouyou still cared for him, still wanted him, and now Yuu knew.  
  
_So everything is perfect now, and we don’t have to worry anymore_ , Yuu smiled up to the blond, his eyes fluttering up slightly to gaze up into Kouyou’s own intoxicated ones.  
  
Their lips parted only when they needed air, and even then, Kouyou was reluctant to let go. His hand tangled within Yuu’s hair, admiring the sight of his raven-haired lover, a lovestruck smile on his face.  
  
“You’re even more beautiful than I remembered,” Kouyou murmured, fingers playing with the raven’s hair, and Yuu almost had chills from hearing Kouyou’s voice after so long. It’d felt good to hear him speak on television, yes, but this was the real deal. Kouyou was standing right before him, and he still looked so in love, his eyes glistening in happiness as he gazed down to Yuu. And Yuu had forgotten the many sweet, corny things Kouyou would always say to him, and perhaps Yuu might have cringed in response to these words a month ago, but now Yuu found that it wasn’t really so bad. Yuu liked it. Yuu missed it. Yuu liked being the center of Kouyou’s attention, and he was happy to know that he still was.  
  
“You’re taller than I remembered,” Yuu replied, cheekily, even if it really was the truth. Yuu didn’t know if it was because he hadn’t seen Kouyou in a month, if it was because he’d missed Kouyou so much, or if it was because his own memories of Kouyou had even gotten a little hazy, but Kouyou stood taller, stronger, and more confidently now. It would have intimidated the raven, if he hadn’t already known the blond himself.  
  
“I don’t think I grew,” Kouyou gave a gentle laugh, finding Yuu’s deduction absurd. Kouyou had already matured after all, and was already in his 30s. “But your hair has. You’ve kept it long. I think it suits you.”  
  
Yuu’s hands drifted back to his own hair, feeling up his raven strands. He hadn’t thought to cut it short, even after the break-up with Kouyou. He just hadn’t ever found time, or perhaps he hadn’t the heart to. Either way, Yuu didn’t regret his decision now, not when Kouyou was looking to it so fondfully. Yuu was glad it made Kouyou happy.  
  
“Did I look bad with shorter hair?” Yuu asked curiously, remembering Christine had snipped half her hair off for the same reason – to impress Kouyou. Yuu wasn’t so sure what type of hair Kouyou truly liked anymore, if he seemed to like Yuu in everything.  
  
“You look good in anything,” Kouyou released a loving sigh, smiling towards the raven. Yuu returned the smile upon hearing his answer. “I would love you even if you were missing hair.”  
  
“That’s a lie,” Yuu snorted, looking away, but Kouyou’s arms slithered around his waist quickly and brought the raven closer into his grasp. Yuu felt his heart flutter at the gesture. Kouyou’s arms were always so sturdy and strong, and now they were back around him. Yuu wouldn’t trade this feeling for anything else in the world.  
  
“I want you, for better or for worse,” Kouyou whispered, a hand reaching up to cup at Yuu’s face, a thumb gently caressing down his cheek. Yuu slowly relaxed into his touch. “I’ll love you, no matter what happens. I’ve spent far too long being miserable because of my own mistakes. I won’t let you go again.”  
  
And it would have been the most perfect thing to hear, now, if Yuu only hadn’t heard those same exact words before.  
  
_I’ll keep you close to me, as long as you’re willing to give your heart to me. I’ll never let you go._  
  
Kouyou had said those before. He’d said those before, and as Yuu recounted every word, he felt his eyes start to water. Kouyou had said those before, and then he left. He’d broken all of his promises, and he’d let Yuu go. He’d lied to him. How was he to know Kouyou wouldn’t lie to him again? They ended up spending a whole month apart because of this. Because Kouyou had let go of him.  
  
“Hey, hey,” Kouyou’s voice grew panicky, watching as the raven in his hold started to choke up a sob. He rushed to pacify Yuu, hushing him and planting a soft kiss against the side of Yuu’s head. “Babydoll, babydoll, please. Please don’t start crying. Tell me what’s wrong. I made a promise to myself never to make you cry, again, so please don’t cry. It pains me to see you do so.”  
  
Yuu’s fingers grasped onto Kuyou’s shirt, clinging on to his chest. He tried to control his sobs, swallowing down the lump in his throat painfully. He loved Kouyou so much, and the thought of Kouyou ever leaving him again was far too much for him to take. Yuu was so,  _so_ scared. He never wanted it to happen again. But now Kouyou was saying the same things to him he did before, and what if they ended up repeating history? Yuu couldn’t tell.  
  
“I don’t want to be left alone again,” Yuu admitted, burying his face meekly into Kouyou’s chest. “I thought I’d lost you, and I thought I could be fine with that. I didn’t want to bother you, I couldn’t let myself hurt you again. But it’s so hard, to sleep at night, and I still wear the scarf you gave me. I love you so much, but I don’t know if you’ll hurt me again. Or if I’ll hurt you. And now I’m so scared of being left alone again. You used to say you’d never let me go, but…”  
  
“But I made a mistake, sweetheart,” Kouyou spoke gently, his tone soothing. He wrapped his arms around the raven’s back, almost protectively, as if he were to be shielding Yuu from any danger. “I know I don’t deserve you. I never did. But I’d lost my temper, and I’d let my mind run astray. You still came looking for me in the end, wanting to make things right. I ended up breaking your heart that day. I’ll never do that again. I’ll never push you away like that again, I promise, my little flower.”  
  
“You told me you didn’t know me,” Yuu struggled for breath, suppressing his tears. His heart still hurt from recounting that memory. “I never thought you could ever do that. I never thought you wouldn’t want me anymore.”  
  
“I want you, so,  _so_  much,” Kouyou affirmed, easing his eyes shut as he embraced Yuu tight. “You don’t know how sorry I am for that. I hate myself for doing that to you, more than you can ever hate me for it. I hate that I hadn’t thought things through. I hate that I broke your heart.”  
  
Yuu felt his anxiously beating heart begin to stabilize at his words. He could tell Kouyou meant those. And then with a deep breath, Yuu vocalized the words he’d been meaning to say all these while.  
  
“I’m sorry I broke your heart, too.”  
  
There it was. The apology that Yuu had kept to himself for so long, wondering if he would ever get a chance one day to do so in front of the older man. The moment those two words  _I’m sorry_  left Yuu’s mouth, the raven felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. And Yuu finally said it. Yuu finally let Kouyou know he hadn’t meant it at all, that Yuu regretted everything he’d said and did, that Yuu regretted breaking Kouyou’s fragile heart that very day. It hadn’t been worth it in the end. The smugness and the satisfaction; it all hadn’t been worth it, all in the name of spite. Nothing was ever worth losing Kouyou over, Yuu knew now.  
  
“It wasn’t your fault,” Kouyou smiled, a little more reassured now that Yuu had calmed down, and his eyes were beginning to lighten up.  
  
“May I take you out for lunch? I’ve made reservations at a restaurant. We’ll talk more there. Maybe you’d like to get changed, first. Though, I really don’t mind if you insist on wearing this cute apron out…” Kouyou’s eyes were suddenly gleaming as they scanned Yuu’s current dressing from head to toe.  
  
Yuu was only then reminded of the white, frilly apron he was wearing, having been in the midst of baking muffins with Takanori all these while. Now, this  _definitely_  explained Takanori’s insistence on buying the frilly aprons for them… Yuu wouldn’t be surprised if Kouyou had requested Takanori to do so himself.  
  
Perhaps some things never did change after all.  
  
“I’ll change,” Yuu sighed, with a small laugh, narrowing his eyes to Kouyou.  
  
The blond was absolutely delighted at how adorable Yuu looked in this get up.  
  
“Dressing just like a housewife, already–”  
  
“You’re incorrigible!” Yuu lamented, though he secretly didn’t mind, at all. Yuu no longer minded anything anymore from the blond. He’d wished for one whole month for Kouyou to hold him, to just tease him again. Yuu only wished to make Kouyou the happiest man he could now, as far as possible.  
  
~  
  
Yuu had missed getting into Kouyou’s black Lamborghini  _so_ much. He was almost running to get into the car at the sight of it, too happy to slip into the front passenger seat. Kouyou always picked him up in this car for dates, and now Yuu was finally back in it again. He’d missed the leather seats and the choking smell of Kouyou’s cologne. He’d missed how easy it was to talk to Kouyou like this, seated right next to him, admiring Kouyou’s built arms with their defined veins as he drove on. Everything was going back to how it was before, and Yuu couldn’t be more grateful. He’d missed everything.  
  
Kouyou only looked to Yuu in amusement as he got into his own seat, strapping the seatbelt over himself. Yuu had already gleefully settled into his own seat, and in his hands held the bouquet of roses Kouyou had brought along – and later thoughtlessly discarded onto the ground, when Yuu had pulled him into a kiss. Still, Yuu looked  _so_ happy to be back in Kouyou’s car, holding yet another bouquet of flowers gifted to him by Kouyou, that it made Kouyou chuckle to himself, his heart warming up at the sight. Yuu was always so cute.  
  
“Did you have to go to a florist to get me these flowers?” Yuu asked, rather innocently, glancing up to his lover. Kouyou didn’t think too much of the question.  
  
“I did. The woman at the flower shop recognizes me by now, from how many times I’ve been there,” Kouyou laughed, almost embarrassed, shaking his head. “She knows I always get you the same red roses.”  
  
_He sees you every week, doesn’t he? Sometimes even twice, or thrice. He drives personally to see you, and he buys flowers everytime. He used to get his secretary to order flowers for me, and a delivery man would get them to me. Kouyou never got them on his own for me. But he did for you._  
  
Yuu smiled softly to himself, knowing that he’d wanted to check if Kouyou  _really_ always went to a flower shop personally to get him these roses, and it turned out to be true. Christine hadn’t been lying when she said Kouyou was always making time for him. Kouyou had been putting in so much effort for Yuu, and Yuu never knew.  
  
Yuu never had a base of comparison before, since Kouyou never did dwell much on his past, but now thanks to Christine, Yuu was able to get a small sense of the old Kouyou that he’d used to be. Kouyou really was a changed person now, if Yuu compared the Kouyou he was currently to the cold, unfeeling Kouyou he had been. Kouyou  _really_  wanted this relationship to work. Yuu couldn’t fault Kouyou for anything anymore.  
  
“Thank you for the flowers,” Yuu thanked him sweetly, smiling blissfully up to the older man. “I’m not sure if I’ve told you before, but I love them. I really do love them, a lot. I appreciate every bouquet you give me.”  
  
Kouyou simply smiled back, waving it off. “It’s nothing, Yuu. You’re my flower, after all. You deserve all the flowers in the world.”  
  
~  
  
Yuu let out a gasp of surprise when Kouyou held his hand and led him into the Japanese restaurant that they’d been to on their very first date. They hadn’t ever come back since then, considering there seemed to be an endless amount of restaurants that Kouyou always brought him out to; and to be coming back to the restaurant they’d dined at for their very first date brought forth an excited grin to Yuu’s face. It felt like day one all over again. Yuu could even remember how nervous he’d felt back then, having dinner with such an attractive, young CEO. He hadn’t known what to say at all, and had to wait for Kouyou to initiate their first conversation. Yuu had been an utter train wreck.  
  
“I thought that since we’d been here on our first date, we should have our very first lunch as a couple right here again,” Kouyou explained, affectionately glancing over to Yuu. “So things could come full circle. This place could be special to us, and belong to us only.”  
  
“I didn’t know you took note of all of these things,” Yuu murmured, squeezing Kouyou’s hand in his. “That’s very sweet of you.” It really was. Kouyou couldn’t be more sensitive in his approach to such relationship matters.  
  
Kouyou was glad Yuu appreciated it. “I wasn’t even sure if you wanted me back, Yuu. I remember everything about you. I’ll make this first date perfect, I promise.” And that was one promise Yuu was sure he could uphold.  
  
After they were ushered to their seats, Kouyou was picking up the menu immediately, as was his usual habit, ordering as soon as possible.  
  
“What would you like to eat today?” Kouyou asked, smiling to Yuu.  
  
“I want to eat what I ate on our first date,” Yuu requested cutely. If Kouyou claimed to remember every detail about him, then  _this_  he should know. It wasn’t like Yuu would get mad at Kouyou if he didn’t, but he wanted to know how far back Kouyou’s memory could go. “Do you still remember what I ate then?”  
  
Kouyou laughed shortly, knowing the younger man was blatantly testing him.  
  
“Of course, my sweet princess,” Kouyou cooed to his lover. “How could I forget?”  
  
And so Kouyou passed the test.  
  
The orders were placed quickly, for Kouyou was afraid of starving Yuu, and very soon they settled into peaceful silence at their table, simply gazing to each other, their eyes locked with one another.  
  
Yuu found this, again, to be reminiscent of their first date. Yuu had stared at Kouyou quietly back then, not knowing what to say. Would he come across as airheaded? Too immature for his tastes? Yuu had worried anxiously then whether he’d be able to get this Kouyou person to like him enough to establish a permanent arrangement with him, because Yuu wasn’t going to be content with just one dinner date, but Yuu realized now with a laugh that he had nothing to be worried about, after all these time.  
  
They had been through so much, and here they were still, seated opposite each other, their eyes so full of love. Kouyou always gazed to him as if he were looking at a goldmine, as if Yuu was something so precious and irreplaceable in his eyes. Yuu had never felt uncomfortable or uneasy under his stares; Kouyou always made his heart tingle with the way he showed his love so transparently.  
  
“I had so many things I wanted to say to you,” Kouyou was the first to start, clearing his throat, a silly smile on his face. “I really did. I spent one whole month scripting out the things I would say to you if I ever saw you again. I spent so much time coming up with different ways to tell you I still loved you. But I’m staring at you now, and I can’t remember anything else. And I don’t even know where to start.”  
  
Yuu willed himself not to blush under Kouyou’s words. “You’ve reached your romantic quota for the day. You don’t have to keep littering me with compliments, you know.” Because it really did seem as if Kouyou was trying extra hard today, and Yuu wasn’t sure if Kouyou was feeling obliged to do so, just for him.  
  
A deep frown etched its way onto Kouyou’s face. “I’m not doing it on purpose. I didn’t have a chance at all to say anything I wanted to you for so long. And I’m finally getting that chance again, today. I never thought I would even get today. So I have to make the best use of our time possible.” And he said this so seriously, so solemnly, his brows furrowed in grim thought.  
  
“I’m not going anywhere,” Yuu laughed softly, looking down shyly to his hands on the table. Kouyou reached out a hand and entwined Yuu’s fingers with his, his coarse fingers gently stroking against Yuu’s ones.  
  
“I know,” Kouyou whispered, caressing Yuu slowly. “I won’t let you go anywhere, anymore. I’ll keep you safe by my side, always.” It took him a full minute to realize how strange that sounded. “You can go anywhere you want, of course. I’m not a stalker, or anything like that…” The older man had a disturbed expression on his face.  _Oh_ , Kouyou was acting beyond adorable now. He was so awkward it was endearing.  
  
“You don’t have to explain yourself to me,” Yuu giggled, gazing up to Kouyou. “You’re acting so odd now. This isn’t really our first date, you know. We’ve known each other much longer.”  
  
Kouyou managed a low chuckle himself. “It does feel strange. It feels like I still have to impress you, or something. Like I’m afraid if I don’t put on my best behavior, you might still run away.”  
  
_So Kouyou still feels that way._  
  
Yuu’s heart softened at Kouyou’s outright confession. “I’ve waited for you to come back every single day you’ve been away, Kouyou. I’m not going to run away anytime soon.”  
  
Kouyou looked much more comforted after hearing his words, but there was still a shimmer of fear in his eyes. “I just don’t want you to refuse to acknowledge me again. It made me feel discarded, like garbage. I… I wanted to apologize, and make things right, and I… got nothing instead.” Kouyou lowered his gaze, looking slightly upset by the memory. It chewed agonizingly at Yuu’s own heart. “I hadn’t known just how much it could hurt. And I know I deserved it. I deserved you doing that to me. But I’d gone to you, so hopeful, and…”  
  
“We both made the same mistakes,” Yuu hastily said, clutching Kouyou’s hand tightly into his. “Kouyou… It doesn’t matter anymore. We’ve both hurt just as much, but it’s all okay now, right? I’m just happy you’re back. And you’re eating. And you look healthy again.” The younger man raised his other hand up to Kouyou’s face, gently tracing his fingers down the blond’s strong jaw. “I kept thinking about how thin you looked, when you came to find me at the university. Akira told me then you hadn’t been eating much for days.”  
  
Kouyou’s lips spread into a small smile at Yuu’s concern. “Trust Akira to tell you things like that. It isn’t anything much to worry about, sweetheart. It’d just been a rough week then. I’d… missed you too much,” the blond admitted, heaving a low sigh. “I tried to bury myself in work, to at least take my mind off you, but it didn’t work. It never worked. And then... Yutaka came.”  
  
Yuu went rigid at the mention of the brunet.  _This_ was what he’d wanted to ask Kouyou about, for he’d mulled too many times over what had actually happened between his ex-lover and best friend. It was only because of Yutaka’s confrontation with Kouyou that had led to the huge fight between Yuu and Yutaka, but at the same time, Yuu was thankful that it’d helped it escalate that far. If Yutaka hadn’t been desperate to seek Kouyou out for a confrontation, Yuu wouldn’t have gotten mad, and it wouldn’t have given Yuu a reason to finally tell Yutaka how he truly felt, to tell Yutaka that Yuu saw no future between the two of them. Yuu wouldn’t have had the opportunity to move out then, to close this painful chapter of his life and leave it behind. Yuu wouldn’t have had the chance to grow from it. Yuu would still remain the young, timid Aoi he used to be.  
  
“Will you tell me what happened with Yutaka?” Yuu asked gently, hoping he wouldn’t be touching a sensitive topic with the blond. Only Kouyou and Yutaka knew themselves what had honestly went down that day, and Yuu didn’t know if it would hit a soft spot in Kouyou. Kouyou had caught a plane the day after and left the country, after all. Yutaka  _must_ have provoked him to a certain extent.  
  
“Of course I will,” Kouyou answered, smiling weakly to his lover. “I’ll tell you everything you want to know, Yuu. It really wasn’t that big of a deal…” Kouyou pursed his lip, slowly recalling the events of that day. “I’d found it strange, myself, why Yutaka had suddenly come to see me in my office. He was acting a little unusual, but I’d never known him much personally, and so I didn’t question it. He… told me how you had moved on. That you were so much happier with him, and that he was sick and tired of seeing me chase after you like a lost puppy. He said I was annoying not only him, but also you, and that you laughed and called me pathetic in my absence. He said I was foolish for having come to your university to see you,” A frown tainted his face. “That I best stop coming after you, when you wanted nothing to do with me anymore. And most of all… he laughed at how weak Takashima Kouyou had become. That I hadn’t known how to cherish the things I loved most, and now had to crawl back to you begging for another chance. He called me pitiful. Tragic. And that I deserved all that had come to me.”  
  
Yuu winced, hearing the harsh words Yutaka had used with Kouyou. It’d gone on far worse than Yuu had thought. Although Yutaka had long apologized to the raven and understood where he’d gone wrong, it didn’t take away the fact that he’d said some extremely hateful things to Kouyou. Yuu just hoped Kouyou didn’t still take his words to heart.  
  
“What did you say to him?” Yuu asked, concerned. Kouyou must have at least stood up for himself, right?  
  
“Nothing,” Kouyou answered, without a moment of thought. “I hadn’t been speaking to anyone for days, and out of nowhere, Yutaka was barging into my office and confirming my worst fears for me – that you didn’t need me anymore. So I simply sat in my office chair and gave him my time. I just didn’t have anything to say, not even to defend myself. I knew what he’d said was right. I’d become the very definition of pathetic. You wouldn’t like the Kouyou I had become. I was weak, all because I’d been so blinded with anger. And I’d lost you. And I deserved it.”  
  
“You know Yutaka was only saying that because he was in love with me,” Yuu chided, dismayed by how Kouyou had been so easily affected by Yutaka’s words. “He was lying, too. I hadn’t gotten in any relationship with him. We had… something ambiguous, but nothing truly ever happened between us. I felt nothing for him.”  
  
“That was hard to believe at that time, especially when I’d just seen you all wrapped up in Yutaka’s arms right before my eyes,” Kouyou said, gazing sadly to the raven. “How was I to know anything about what was going on between the both of you? It was clear to me that you’d left me and gone to him. I was heartbroken for weeks.”  
  
Yuu’s heart ached at the thought of having upset Kouyou like that. “I’m sorry I made you think that about me.” The only thing that had been running through his mind at that time was how far he could go when it came to breaking Kouyou’s heart, just as much as Kouyou had done to his. Yuu had only revenge in mind at that time. Yuu hadn’t thought of anything else. Now Yuu regretted everything; regretted allowing Yutaka to have taken him so easily into his arms, regretted allowing Yutaka to think he had gained control.  
  
“No, it’s fine, now,” Kouyou shook his head, not wanting his lover to worry over him. “It really is. I’ve gotten over it. I came back prepared, anyway. I was going to fight for you regardless. Akira had long told me that you’d moved out of Yutaka’s place to live with Takanori, so I guessed something must have happened between you and Yutaka. But even if you hadn’t moved out, it didn’t matter to me. I was going to come back and show you a new me. I was going to show you just how much I’ve changed from the me that had been so, so loathsome. I was going to prove to you I was a man worth being with.”  
  
Yuu smiled so wide at his words it almost hurt. Kouyou had changed, too. Kouyou had been trying so hard for his sake.  
  
“You’ve always been the perfect man,” Yuu sighed, saying, playing with Kouyou’s fingers. “I watched you on television, and you were so charming, so confident. I can’t believe you did that for me. I hadn’t expected that at all.”  
  
Kouyou smiled bashfully at Yuu’s words. “It was nothing, Yuu. I’m just happy you liked it. I guess I just wanted to make it clear that I wasn’t available, that my heart had always only belonged to one person. And that was you. I wouldn’t accept anyone else.”  
  
Yuu’s own smile widened. “I can’t believe you love me.” He really couldn’t. Kouyou was so perfect.  
  
“I can’t believe you love me, too,” Kouyou laughed, grasping Yuu’s hand warmly in his. “I can’t believe how lucky I am.”  
  
“How lucky we are,” Yuu corrected, not wanting Kouyou to discount himself. “I’ll never look at another man again. I have never. I never did. Not even with Die,” the raven’s eyes grew troubled as he suddenly remembered his ex-sugar daddy’s involvement. Did Kouyou still worry about him? “Not even with Yutaka. I’ve never felt anything for them.”  
  
“I know, sweetheart,” Kouyou rushed to assure, seeing the distress in Yuu’s eyes. “I know. I know I got angry with you over them, but I’m not anymore. I know now nothing had happened. I should have believed you. And if anything, I should be the one to be blamed. I knew you probably had previous arrangements, but I never cared to talk to you about them. I must say I’m slightly selfish in that fact. I just didn’t want to think of you in another man’s arms at all.  
  
But I’m thinking now, to start this relationship anew, perhaps we should be upfront about everything. Just so misunderstandings won’t occur again. Just so if anything arises, we already know what’s going on. So I won’t be confused, and get mad because of my confusion again.”  
  
Yuu was smiling so much at this point it was even starting to hurt.  
  
“You want to know… everything?” Yuu asked softly, still a little hesitant. He’d had so many arrangements, after all. There were so many first dates, so many different men, so many nights Yuu would spend at his sugar daddies’ place. Yuu had been the perfect lover for many of them, but only for the sake of money. Kouyou wouldn’t like hearing most of it at all, if not any of it. Yuu was a little paranoid how Kouyou would be able to take this, but gazing to the determined and resolute look in Kouyou’s eyes, Yuu felt perhaps Kouyou might be up to the task. Kouyou was different now. Kouyou was  _his_ Kouyou. Kouyou was so much stronger now, and Yuu was so proud.  
  
“I want to know everything,” Kouyou smiled, nodding his head affirmatively. “And we’ll have plenty of time for it, won’t we?”  
  
Yuu couldn’t help but feel Kouyou was hinting something with his words. “Will we?”  
  
“I think we will,” Kouyou murmured, and he raised Yuu’s hand to his lips, bestowing a gentle kiss to it.  
  
Kouyou hadn’t done this in such a long time, and Yuu loved how Kouyou was always so fond of kissing his hand, so gently like this. Kouyou’s kisses to his hair and his hand always felt much more intimate than their usual lip-to-lip kisses, even though those kisses were good, too. Or maybe Yuu was just in love with every different way Kouyou kissed him. And maybe Yuu just wanted to feel those lips against his skin no matter what.  
  
It felt like everything had finally fallen back into place, just the way it should be. And they talked,  _god,_  they talked the whole time, telling each other about everything they’d missed when they were apart. Yuu heard about Kouyou’s time in Europe, Kouyou heard about Yuu’s fall-out with Yutaka and his adventures with Takanori, and they also cast their mind back to the many times they had woken up in bed alone, feeling longingly for the other’s presence next to them. And then when they’d finally caught up with each other, Yuu begun talking about his past, and the many men he used to have been paid to date, and Kouyou listened intently to every one, even though sometimes he still outwardly flinched in displeasure when he heard of how they used to spoil and pamper Yuu like Kouyou did for him. But Yuu always coaxed him and told him it’d all only been business arrangements, and nothing emotionally had truly been real. And Kouyou believed Yuu.  
  
Kouyou also shared about his past loves. He talked about his brief high school romance, his two-year relationship with a colleague at work when he’d just been starting out in his career, and finally he talked about Christine. It’d been most painful to talk about Christine, for he’d spent six long years with her, and he’d become the vilest person when he was with her. It wasn’t her fault, Kouyou emphasized, it was only because Kouyou had recently come into power then, recently came into his position as a CEO, and he’d been frantic to maintain a hold over his position, frantic to overwork himself and prove his worth. He hadn’t been too sensitive to Christine’s needs, and assumed money could buy her everything. Christine had felt abandoned, and thus left him with good reason. Kouyou vowed not to make the same mistake with Yuu, and that was why Kouyou was showering so much time and love on Yuu now, determined not to let him get away. Yuu did see that. Yuu saw all of his efforts come to life. Yuu knew Kouyou wasn’t lying.  
  
And after a whole day’s talk, one that continued on even through dinner, they had nothing left to hide from each other anymore. They’d gotten everything out in the open, and they were as transparent to each other as far as the eye could see. They’d forgiven each other, grew and changed in each other’s absence, and were now pieced back together as two stronger pieces of the perfect puzzle.  
  
So now their hearts were not only beating as one, but were beating with resilience, with strength, with resistance to anything that might possibly come their way. And Yuu liked that. Yuu liked that, a lot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> friendly reminder that I have a Spotify playlist for Seeking Arrangement [here](http://open.spotify.com/user/11177336146/playlist/5TTTl4RlQG82pkD7sahP2j). I've added more songs now :D
> 
> wow, guys. you don't know how much my heart hurt when I finished writing this chapter. I wanted to just curl up somewhere and writhe. the drama has finally come to an end - I can't believe you guys endured so much heartbreak for 9 chapters! that's alot! they broke up for 9 chapters! you guys have some dedication right there. I'm giving all of you a bouquet of roses, handpicked from Kouyou himself.
> 
> I feel like I need to specify this very clearly here, because people are bound to get confused: **THIS STORY HAS NOT YET ENDED**. I still have more to write. how much more, exactly? I haven't decided how _much_ more yet. but I do know that I still have more content to give you guys. actually, I didn't think this story might hit 45 chapters, but I'm thinking it might actually hit it now. soo, there's a rough gauge for y'all. :D (sorry I'm still running around like a headless chicken screaming that I've already hit 200k+ words for this fic!!! whaaaAAAAaaaat. ~~THIS STORY WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A ONE-SHOT HOW DID IT GET SO LONG~~ )
> 
> tell me how much you cried (or didn't cry, since I'm not sure if there was really anything to cry over in this chapter -- what a relief) and tell me your thoughts on this as usual <3 I love reading all your comments. don't think I'd have continued SA the way I did without them. so, thank you guys so much. I love you, and you, and you. ♡


	40. Chapter 40

Yuu had to bite back a pained moan as Kouyou slammed him right up against the bedroom door, the older man’s rough hands drifting hastily down behind Yuu to the doorknob to promptly twist it and lock it shut. There was no point to locking it whatsoever; Kouyou lived alone, and it wasn’t as if anyone would intrude upon them any moment. But Yuu had a suspicion Kouyou had done so only to let Yuu know that he wasn’t going to let the raven-haired run away anytime soon, and it made Yuu laugh silently to himself at the way he could read his lover’s mind so easily.  
   
_Always so possessive, Kouyou,_  Yuu thought with a smirk, knowing he wouldn’t leave even if given the chance. The older man was in one of his impatient moods again, and  _god_ , Kouyou always looked so hot whenever he was driven with lust like this. They’d been apart for so long, and Kouyou must have missed him dearly in the comfort of his arms, his embrace,  _and_ his bed.  
   
Kouyou was a hot-blooded man in his mid 30s, and Yuu knew any other man would have felt the same impatience, felt the same amount of sexual desire for a lover they hadn’t seen in so long. Yuu couldn’t deny that he’d missed Kouyou, too. Not only in terms of love, but also in terms of how Kouyou always used to be able to satisfy his needs – to be dominated, to be taken, to be held. Kouyou knew his body like no other, and they even used to fuck  _every_  single time they met. It was safe to say that this meeting of theirs wouldn’t end up any other way – not when the both of them craved for each other’s bodies in the same intense way.  
   
They’d spent the most part of their day settling the intricacies of their emotions, of how they could take their relationship further, of how they could go on. Kouyou had asked earlier if Yuu would still be interested in moving into his penthouse, and Yuu had answered  _yes_  without a moment’s hesitation, much to Kouyou’s surprise. But Yuu  _wanted_  to stay with the blond. Wanted to experience living with him, caring for him, seeing him everyday. Yuu didn’t want to go back to his old routine of only being able to see Kouyou when they went out on dates. They would see each other at least twice a week,  _yes_ , but it wasn’t enough for the raven, not anymore, not when Yuu was always leaving every date feeling empty, upset that he had to part with Kouyou in the first place. He loved Kouyou, and Kouyou loved him back. Yuu didn’t want to spend a single moment away from the blond any longer, and he knew Kouyou felt the same.  
   
And once matters pertaining to the future of their relationship were more or less settled, Yuu started to notice how quickly the atmosphere began to shift between them. They’d spent a nice dinner together at a five-star French restaurant, complete with red wine and steak, and Yuu’d never felt happier resuming his usual dates with Kouyou. Kouyou was particularly affectionate and sensitive to him the entire day, always complimenting, always asking after Yuu’s needs, leaving no room for Yuu to get upset. Yuu knew he had Kouyou whipped once more; the blond wouldn’t dare do anything that would upset Yuu again.  
   
Kouyou eventually got more daring, though. Kouyou slowly got bolder, especially towards the end of the dinner, and perhap it was the red wine, perhaps it was because they’d finally talked everything out and Kouyou was reassured that he now had Yuu back by his side again. Whichever it was, Kouyou wasn’t afraid to begin making it clear he wouldn’t let this night end without a huge  _bang_. Because Kouyou had begun to gaze to him so lustfully, so lecherously, so vulturously, and Yuu had worked as a sugar baby long enough to be able to tell when a man wanted you in his bed, and when he didn’t – and Kouyou was currently exhibiting all the symptoms of a man who couldn’t wait to pin you right up against a wall and ravage you to bits.  
   
And who was Yuu to deny him?  
   
So he allowed Kouyou take him back to his apartment and do just that.  
   
There were so many different sides to Kouyou, and each and every one of them always excited Yuu. There was the charming, dreamy side to him, the one that always showered Yuu with expensive gifts and devoted his utmost attention to Yuu; there was the domineering, controlling Kouyou, the one that only existed in his workplace as a CEO and never towards Yuu; there was also the sensitive, patient side to him, the one that spoke of his past and his dreams and his hopes for a future with Yuu; and then lastly there was the brutish, crude side to Kouyou, the one that monopolized and fucked Yuu  _so_ hard until the raven’s legs could go limp from how good he was.  
   
And Yuu liked brutish Kouyou very,  _very_  much. Yuu liked how Kouyou’s eyes would darken with desire at the very sight of Yuu whenever he was in one of those moods, Yuu liked the vulgar manner in which Kouyou’s gaze would travel down Yuu’s body, and Yuu always liked to feel those large, rough hands of Kouyou’s move to cup the back of his ass –  
   
 – just like how the older man was doing right now. Yuu bit down against his lip as an instinctive reaction, doe-eyes blinking up innocently to Kouyou as he felt the blond’s sizeable palm cup around an ass cheek of his and squeeze it tightly in his grasp.  _Fuck_ , Yuu had to let out a soft whine, easing his eyes shut, letting out a heavy breath at the way Kouyou was feeling him up. Yuu hadn’t allowed anyone to touch him like this in a long time, not ever since Kouyou left, and to say Yuu had been sexually deprived all these while would honestly be an understatement. He’d missed being groped and felt up like this by Kouyou too much, he’d missed being Kouyou’s  _whore_. Yuu had allowed Kouyou to own his body so long ago; and Yuu couldn’t fathom the thought of allowing anyone else treat him this way, Yuu couldn’t even imagine a one night stand with any other man anymore. And maybe that was why Yuu had stayed away from clubs or bars all these time, and maybe that was why Yuu had ignored the occasional phone number given to him from interested parties at his university. He didn’t think anyone could live up to his expectations, could live up to  _fucking_ him like Kouyou did to him, could live up to how ruthless Kouyou could be to him in bed.  
   
“So firm,” Kouyou breathed, still squeezing Yuu’s ass, a smug smile on his lips. Yuu bit down harder against his lower lip as Kouyou’s one finger moved to trail down his ass crack, tracing it teasingly against the thin cloth of his pants.  _Fuck_ … Yuu needed to feel that finger slipping in already, thrusting into him furiously from within. Kouyou was always such a tease…  
   
“ _Unn_ …” Yuu whined, bringing a hand up to the side of Kouyou’s jaw, pulling him down quickly for a restless kiss. If Kouyou wasn’t planning to take any action soon, Yuu  _would._ The older man happily obliged, though his hands remained on Yuu’s ass still, and he stepped in to close the little distance between them, pressing his body warmly right up against Yuu. Yuu had been preoccupied with Kouyou’s aggressive tongue, but the moment Kouyou grinded himself into Yuu, the raven-haired was immediately distracted by the heavy bulge in Kouyou’s pants and the way it pressed right up against Yuu’s stomach. Yuu went prideful at the knowledge that he was responsible for this, knowing that Kouyou wanted him to know _just_  how much Yuu’d turned him on. They’d barely done any foreplay, but they’d waited long enough. They’d been apart for too long, and so every single time their skin came into contact it set them blazing with excruciating desire.  
   
Still kissing Kouyou, Yuu lowered a hand down to the front of Kouyou’s crotch, stroking lightly at the older man’s hard-on experimentally. Kouyou hissed into the kiss, but arched up closer into Yuu’s touch, encouraging Yuu to do more. Kouyou was kissing him more forcefully now, more urgently, not that Yuu minded, since he wasn’t too focused on the kiss anymore – and Yuu relished in every low groan that Kouyou made at the back of his throat as Yuu’s hand slipped into the front of his pants and circled around Kouyou’s naked cock, fondling with it excruciatingly slowly, if only to tease Kouyou back.  
   
“Babydoll,” Kouyou whispered, almost warningly, just as he tore his lips harshly away from the kiss. Yuu smiled slightly when he noticed how riled up Kouyou already was, his blond hair in a mess, his lips battered, his eyes desperate, even though Yuu was _only_  mildly stroking his cock. Kouyou truly was too easy to please.  
   
“I bet my hand feels  _so_ good,” Yuu grinned, applying more pressure now, his grip on Kouyou’s cock going faster and harder, his hand sliding up and down, his fingers moving back and forth. Kouyou’s pants were louder this time, now that he didn’t have Yuu’s tongue to muffle him, and  _fuck_ , Yuu fucking loved it when his older lover made sinful noises like  _these_  that Kouyou could barely control. Unlike Yuu, Kouyou was so rarely vocal, but Yuu loved it when Kouyou lost the authority he so desperately held on to when it came to surrendering to Yuu’s lewd advances. Yuu could make Kouyou do  _anything_.  
   
“Yuu… Fuck,” Kouyou moaned quietly into Yuu’s touch, almost shivering at how pleasurable it felt. “You don’t know how many times I’ve touched myself the past month… imagining your hands instead. You don’t fucking know how many different ways I’ve tortured you in my fantasies…”  
   
_Oh_ , Yuu squeezed his thighs together at that very mental image. Kouyou, alone in his room, taking his cock out and relieving himself to plenty of dirty, sexual images of Yuu running through his mind. What did Kouyou imagine Yuu do? Did Kouyou think of Yuu’s head bobbing up and down with his mouth enclosed around the older man’s cock, did Kouyou think of Yuu’s blushing face with salty tears running down his cheeks as he attempted to deep-throat him? Knowing Kouyou, he would have imagined  _far_ worse.  
   
The knowledge that Kouyou had been masturbating on the regular to thoughts of Yuu made the raven’s lower regions react rather  _violently_  in return, and soon Yuu sank to his knees before Kouyou, delighted to please Kouyou even further. Yuu wanted to be good to Kouyou… Yuu wanted to reward Kouyou for all the fantasizing he’d done of the younger raven.  
   
Pulling down the zipper, Yuu unbuttoned the top of Kouyou’s pants and gently freed Kouyou’s erection from its confines, the raven’s lips spreading wider into a smile once Kouyou’s cock sprung out, huge and thick and already fully erect. It’d been a month since he lay his eyes upon  _it_ , and jesus it was fucking big  _and_ beautiful. Yuu’s delicate hand grasped the side of it, easing it to his lips; then he begun pressing a line of soft kisses along the underside, moaning lewdly at the familiar taste of Kouyou’s raw length against his tongue, knowing the blond loved hearing Yuu’s moans loud and clear more than anything in the world.  
   
“ _Nnn…_ ”  
   
Kouyou’s breath hitched at the sound of Yuu’s moan, his eyes slowly turning half-lidded. He relaxed slowly into Yuu’s mouth, one of his hands reaching down to tuck Yuu’s long hair back behind his ear, pulling it back considerately for the raven. Kouyou wanted to see Yuu’s pretty face clearly when he did this, too, wanted to see Yuu so subservient, so obedient, kneeling on the floor, so eager to take Kouyou into his mouth. Yuu was extremely skilled when it came to pleasing his lover, and though Kouyou detested to think about how many times Yuu had done this before to achieve his expert status, Kouyou couldn’t deny that his experience certainly paid off. Because Yuu felt like  _heaven_ , and Kouyou couldn’t ask for a better, more perfect, lover.  
   
Then Yuu was kissing the tip of Kouyou’s cock, circling the head with his tongue, and teasing the slit; and Kouyou’s train of thought was cut off as his hips started trembling along with each sensation. Kouyou had to stifle back a moan as his fingers dug deep into Yuu’s head of hair, clenching tightly at the strands, guiding Yuu along faster and harder with every thrust into his mouth. Yuu pressed his tongue over the thick, hot flesh with varying rhythms and pressures, lapping at Kouyou’s length, running his tongue over it repeatedly until Kouyou’s thighs were shaking and he was spewing out a long stream of curses.  
   
“So hot… Fuck,” Kouyou gripped at Yuu’s hair tighter, earning him a small cry from the raven. Kouyou knew it didn’t really hurt Yuu, though, in fact Yuu loved the pain more than anything; and Kouyou loved how Yuu looked absolutely debauched now, with his cheeks hollowed in, his face tinted with pink blush, his eyes fluttered to a close with his long, thick lashes. Kouyou pulled his hair back firmly, allowing himself to take a good, clear look at the pornographic sight of Yuu’s face.  
   
“Look at you… Look at this princess acting like such a whore for Daddy. You missed Daddy’s cock, didn’t you? I think you definitely missed Daddy’s cock very much. Your mouth must have been so lonely, babydoll…”  
   
“ _Uunn_ …” Yuu moaned against Kouyou’s cock, not disagreeing, slipping Kouyou’s length deeper inside his mouth. Using his hand to wrap around the part of Kouyou that he couldn’t reach, Yuu began pumping it while bobbing his head up and down on the shaft inside his mouth, Kouyou’s cock so deep in that the tip was practically hitting the back of his throat.  
  
“Fuck!” Kouyou cursed in pleasure, feeling his member bump hard against his throat. As good as Yuu’s gag reflex was, Yuu hadn’t been in business for awhile now, and the sensation now felt slightly foreign to him. Yuu felt tears well up quickly in his eyes instinctively once he felt himself begun to choke, and he slipped Kouyou’s cock slowly out of his mouth as he brought a hand up to massage his throat.  
   
“Don’t stop,” Kouyou whispered, almost pleadingly, pushing his cock back in Yuu’s mouth as soon as the raven started pulling away. “You can do it, babydoll, I know you can.”  
   
“ _Mmmff…_ ” Yuu’s response was muffled, but the younger raven didn’t show any signs of backing away this time. Yuu closed his eyes and swallowed his tears down, knowing he couldn’t possibly disappoint his Daddy after all these time.  
   
Obscene wet sounds began leaving his mouth once more as Yuu picked up the pace again, deep-throating Kouyou faster and easier with practice, allowing the older man to fuck his mouth like a hole to be used. Kouyou’s fingers clenched down into Yuu’s hair, his lips parting open uncontrollably in loud groans.  
   
“Fuck,  _fuck_ , fuck, what a fucking slut,  _fuck_ , hit it harder –  _fuck yes_  – Yuu you’re such a bad babydoll, god, look at you – ” The sight of Yuu with tears, real tears, this time, his small, tight mouth trying frantically to bring pleasure to Kouyou’s cock  _could_ be enough to make Kouyou cum. “How many men would die to see such a pretty princess choke on their cock like this,  _fuck_. Such a good whore, such a naughty babydoll…”  
   
Yuu could feel beads of pre-cum leaving Kouyou’s slit and sliding down his throat, and Yuu felt his cock stirring at the taste, knowing it’d been so long since he tasted Kouyou like this. He wanted to swallow all of Kouyou’s cum and he wanted to do it  _knowing_ Kouyou had cum because of him, just for him. Yuu wanted to be the only one who could make Kouyou cum this much, this way. Yuu wanted to be dirtied  _so_ bad by Kouyou.  
   
“B…Babydoll,” Kouyou’s voice suddenly trembled, drops of sweat running down the side of his face as he gritted his teeth in a mix of pain and pleasure. “Get up. Get up before I c-cum. Get up.”  
   
Yuu wouldn’t have minded helping Kouyou reach his release in his mouth, but Yuu knew the older man much preferred releasing himself inside of Yuu instead. And Yuu wasn’t going to deny Kouyou that if the man so preferred dirtying Yuu’s body like a work of pornographic art.  
   
Yuu slipped Kouyou’s erect cock out from his mouth, allowing the blond to pull him up from the floor by his hair. Yuu winced slightly at how rough his lover was being with him, but all of that hesitance melted away once Kouyou planted a kiss softly atop his forehead and carried Yuu up into his arms bridal style.  
   
“I’m going to fuck you,” Kouyou said, his eyes gazing down to Yuu’s face in a transfixed, determined stare. “Hard. I’m so frustrated, Yuu. I’ve been so  _fucking_  sexually frustrated. And now I have your fragile body in my arms, and I’m going to wreck you. I’m not going to let you go.”  
   
Yuu shivered at the intensity of his words, and nodded silently in reply, a cheeky smile on his face. Still licking at his lips, Yuu swallowed the little remnants of pre-cum Kouyou had left in his mouth as the older man threw Yuu right down against his bed, a lustful look on his face.  
   
“So impatient,” Yuu mewled, just as Kouyou crawled atop him, lips devouring Yuu’s mouth up into a hungry kiss. Kouyou wasted no time in stripping Yuu’s cothes off his body. Yuu’s shirt went off first, then his pants – Kouyou wouldn’t rest until all of Yuu’s clothes were thrown onto the floor. And when Yuu was only left clothed in the piece of black, lacey and translucent underwear Yuu had thought to change into before he went out with Kouyou for lunch, Kouyou stared down to Yuu’s body for a good five seconds, admiring the way the lingerie always fit so well around Yuu’s hips.  
   
Yuu wondered what Kouyou saw. A pale, slim body with pink rosy nubs for nipples, and a flat stomach, decorated with a silver navel piercing. Sure, Yuu’s chest wasn’t built as heavily as Kouyou’s was, but maybe there was a certain femininity to the way Yuu’s hips curved and the way his body was so slender and lean that attracted men – and Kouyou – so much. And Yuu always played up his seductive factor with sexy lingerie that made his body  _extremely_ irresistible; something that Yuu noticed often sealed the deal for his partners. With Kouyou, it seemed as if it was a totally different case. With Kouyou, it seemed to heighten his libido even more, and turn him into some sort of predator.  
   
“Die said you wore this for him too…” Kouyou started, his hands slipping down to finger at Yuu’s lacey panties, his words catching Yuu off-guard. “That he couldn’t resist you when you wore lingerie for him. That he wanted to make you his wife…” Fuck, Kouyou’s face was darkening with every word. He was getting angry at the memory, and Yuu knew this only meant he’d get even rougher with Yuu.  
   
And under any other normal circumstance, Yuu would have attempted to pacify Kouyou, he really did. But Yuu wanted nothing more than to be fucked fast and rough now until Kouyou had reduced him to a mewling mess. And Yuu had long learnt how to be incredibly manipulative in bed.  
   
“Perhaps if I’d chosen to become his wife, he would get to see me like this everyday,” Yuu fluttered his eyes up to Kouyou playfully, giggling as he ran his fingers up through his long raven hair. “Rolling around in bed with nothing on except for lingerie. I’d be  _so_ good to him, Kouyou… I’m always so good to whoever’s my  _Daddy_.”  
   
The reaction was instantaneous. Kouyou slammed Yuu right against the headboard of his bed with an angry, animalistic snarl, almost pinning Yuu down just by his sheer weight. Yuu was still smiling flirtatiously up to the blond, amorous eyes teasing Kouyou to do more.  _God_ , Yuu missed it. Yuu  _wanted_ it. Yuu could feel his thighs quivering, already, from the pent-up excitement and anticipation at seeing Kouyou so jealous, so  _possessive_ , so desperate to prove Yuu was his instead.  
   
“Fuck me, Daddy,” Yuu urged on, his fingers reaching for Kouyou’s hand, bringing it forward to rub it lewdly against the front of his panties. Kouyou’s eyes lit up in moderate surprise when he placed his hand against Yuu’s crotch and felt that the lacey material Yuu was adorning had become slightly soaked, proving Yuu had gotten  _so_ hard all these while simply just from hearing Kouyou’s words.  
   
“You’re not allowed to talk about other men in that manner again,” Kouyou snapped, threateningly, his gaze menacing. His fingers were still stroking against Yuu’s underwear, feeling the raven up through his thin panties. “I won’t have it. You’re not even allowed to dress like this for anyone else. These are for my eyes  _only_. Do you understand me, princess?”  
   
The older man was always  _so_  fucking authoritative. But Yuu still felt his cock twitch at Kouyou’s commanding state.  
   
“What makes you think I’ll just let you have your way with me–”  
   
“Do I have to repeat myself?” Kouyou barked, and Yuu’s eyes widened immediately at how serious and somber Kouyou sounded, his lips in a tight, impatient line. Fuck.  _So_ hot.  
   
“I won’t let any other men see me like this,” Yuu whimpered, biting against his lip in a pout. Kouyou was _so_  mean. “I’ll only let Daddy see me like this, Yuu’s sorry… Yuu was only teasing Daddy.”  
   
Kouyou’s stern face lightened up at Yuu’s words, his grim look giving way to a tender smile. “That’s my babydoll,” Kouyou affectionately called, raising up a hand to the side of Yuu’s cheek. He caressed Yuu gently with his fingers, bent down to kiss Yuu softly against the lips, then pulled away with a smile, looking to Yuu admiringly, lovingly. Yuu returned his gaze, confused, but soon Kouyou diverted those thoughts away when he brought his hand down to Yuu’s thighs and pulled them apart roughly.  
   
Yuu watched on as Kouyou rummaged through his drawers for lube, squeezing out a generous amount onto his fingers, turning them wet and slick. Then Kouyou was moving back to in between Yuu’s thighs, using only one finger with his other hand to pull the panties slightly aside.  
   
And then Kouyou was thrusting a lubed finger inside of Yuu’s tight hole, and the raven-haired was immediately gasping, head gently falling back against the fluffy white pillows.  
   
“D…Daddy…” Yuu cried out, feeling Kouyou’s digit so cold and thick inside of him. Everything of Kouyou’s felt  _big_ , fuck. Yuu always felt so helpless, so small, as compared to him. And sure, Yuu had been using several sex toys and sometimes his own fingers to pleasure himself over the course of the past month, but nothing could beat the feeling of Kouyou’s own digits or the older man’s very own cock. Everything always felt so much more intensified when it came to Kouyou. Everything always was better when the older man did it to him himself.  
   
“It’s only a finger and you’re already so excited,” Kouyou said smugly, moving it slowly in and out of the raven. “I wonder how your hungry body even survived the past month without me to fill your holes up.” The older man thrust a second finger in without warning, and Yuu’s hips immediately bucked upwards, the raven’s mouth open in a soft sigh, his hands clenching the sides of the pillows desperately.  
   
“Ah…  _Ah_ … Ah… I… I touched myself,” Yuu moaned out, just as Kouyou begun scissoring his two fingers expertly inside of the raven, loosening him right up. “Touched myself… a lot…  _Nngh…_ Thinking of Daddy…  _Ah_!” Kouyou’s fingers were plunging in deeper and pulling out a lot faster now, spurred on by Yuu’s words, liking how Yuu so readily confessed about fantasizing about Kouyou the past month.  
   
“Daddy… Daddy… Daddy…” Yuu cried out, over and over again, almost humping the two thick fingers inside of him. They’d caused a burning sensation at first, but that melted away quickly once Yuu felt the rough, calloused digits fuck impatiently inside of him, eager to get this done and over with.  
   
“I still have your dirty photos on my phone,” Kouyou grinned, twisting his fingers inside of Yuu. Yuu’s body shuddered helplessly, his head still thrown back with his eyes half-closed. “And the videos, too. I still watch them, you know. I still watch you moan like a whore, cumming as you cry out my name. I watched them every time I needed release. I still have the way your face looks when you orgasm memorized in my head.”  
   
Faint blush crept up to Yuu’s cheeks. “P…Pervert…  _ah_! Ah…  _Nnngh…_  D–Daddy…”  
   
“But today I’ll be seeing it again in the flesh,” Kouyou continued, smirking as he finally pulled his wet fingers out from within the raven. “And I have to warn you, I’m not going to be satisfied seeing it just once. I want to make you cum over and over again, until you have to  _beg_ for me not to fuck you anymore.”  
   
Yuu’s cock was straining so much against his panties now, pre-cum leaking at the tip, fully erect after Kouyou’s teasing, and Yuu frankly  _wanted_ Kouyou to act out on what he’d promised.  
   
“Fuck me until I can’t walk,” Yuu whispered, gazing up sensually to the taller man. “Fuck me until I have no choice but to stay in bed. Fuck my body –  _use it_  – make me scream and cry and have to beg you to let me go. Torture me,” Yuu cried out, almost in a demand, watching as desire flamed up in Kouyou’s eyes at Yuu’s very words. “Fuck me until I lose my voice, Daddy. Your babydoll’s asking you so nicely. Don’t disappoint your princess.”  
   
“You think  _I’ll_ disappoint you?” Kouyou answered with an amused laugh, kneeling against the bed, peeling his own pants off hurriedly and discarding it carelessly to the floor. The older man gave a few quick strokes to his hard cock, coating it with lube, and hummed pridefully when he felt Yuu’s hungry stare on his cock. Yuu  _really_ acted like such a slut in bed.  
   
Then without a moment’s hesitation, he grabbed Yuu by his legs and slid him down across the bed, pulling him closer to him, positioning Yuu in such a way that the raven had his back against the sheets, his long legs hiked up in the air, and his entrance facing right up against Kouyou’s crotch, too ready to be penetrated anytime the older man so wished. Yuu still had his lacey panties on, though – the older man didn’t appear to want to take them off. Kouyou raised a finger to tug the thin piece of cloth to the side like he did before, revealing Yuu’s pink, twitching hole.  
   
And Yuu thought Kouyou would have been too eager to enter him and fuck him, but his lover seemed to want to take it slow and enjoy the first penetration. The head of Kouyou’s cock pressed right up against Yuu’s entrance, teasing Yuu for the first few seconds or so. Then its tip slid in slowly, and the moment his thick head breached inside Yuu found himself gripping tightly at the sheets, his nails digging in as he let out a quivering moan. The initial breach was always painful, but the pain never lasted very long when he slowly grew accustomed to the pleasurable feeling of having his lover inside of him.  
   
“Hot… so hot… Daddy’s always so fucking thick,  _oh fuck_ …” Yuu moaned out blissfully, feeling every additional inch of Kouyou’s cock push inside of him with each coming second, filling him up even more and  _more._  His cock felt so much bigger than Kouyou’s fingers, and felt so much better, too. Yuu hadn’t had a cock inside of him for so long and Yuu had almost forgotten how fucking good the raw sensation felt. Kouyou felt so,  _so_ good.  
   
Kouyou was enjoying it, too. He couldn’t suppress his groans as he slid himself all the way into the raven, his cock fully engulfed by Yuu's incredibly hot and tight inner walls that eagerly took him in. The lacey material from Yuu’s panties brushing at his cock by the side served to sweeten the sensation, and also sweeten the erotic image of Yuu getting fucked like in his lingerie even further.  
   
“Sweet babydoll, I’m all the way in…” Kouyou breathed, calloused hands reaching up to hold Yuu by the sides of his hips. “ _Oh_ , princess, you feel  _so_  good…  _Ohh_ … Fuck… So tight… So fucking tight…”  
   
Kouyou’s face was scrunched in absolute  _ecstasy_. And well, that was all good, but…  
   
“Daddy,” Yuu mewled out a second later, attempting to wriggle his hips to get Kouyou to move. “Please move.”  
   
Kouyou’s hold on him was strong, though, and Yuu barely managed to move an inch.  
   
Kouyou slipped out a low chuckle, making no move to listen to him. “So needy, babydoll.”  
   
“Fuck me, dammit,” Yuu pouted, still (attempting to) squirm his body in Kouyou’s grasp, egging Kouyou on.  
   
“So demanding,” Kouyou frowned disapprovingly, his hands gliding down to the back of Yuu’s ass, seizing Yuu’s cheeks painfully into his palms. “You don’t get to demand things of Daddy, princess.”  
   
Yuu’s cock stiffened at the rough manner Kouyou always seemed to abuse his behind. “You’re always so mean to me, and–!”  
   
_SMACK_. Yuu let out a loud, astonished cry once he felt the harsh contact of Kouyou’s palm slapping down against an ass cheek, cutting the raven off mid-speech.  
   
“Daddy!” Yuu sobbed out, not having expected the harsh treatment, wet tears quickly staining his long lashes. What did he even do wrong this time? Kouyou smacked him on his ass cheek so hard the raven could already feel the red mark surfacing up on his skin. Kouyou had always been dominant, had always been so in control when it came to their lovemaking, but this time it seemed as if Kouyou was doubling his authoritative behavior just to ensure Yuu still remembered his place after a month long absence. Or perhaps Kouyou had locked away the sexual side to him – that’d been  _so_  incredibly domineering – for far too long; and now that Kouyou finally had a chance to unleash the untamed beast inside of him, the blond wasn’t holding any of it back at all. Kouyou must be starving, after all. Kouyou must have been  _so_  sexually deprived.  
   
But it didn’t mean Yuu didn’t like it. Yuu had always been so fond of being taken, being controlled, and right now Kouyou was giving him everything he wanted – with double the intensity. Yuu still found himself trembling in want in Kouyou’s grasp, his pink nipples hardening with every stern look Kouyou gave his way, his erect cock pulsating with every angry word Kouyou said.  
   
“Don’t forget whose cock is inside you right now,” Kouyou purred dangerously, a hint of irritation in his voice. But then he took one look at Yuu’s vulnerable-looking, tear-stained eyes and his features visibly softened; and he hurriedly leaned over to Yuu to bestow a soft kiss against his hair. Yuu whimpered softly as he did so, liking the kiss.  
   
“But Daddy’s not mad at you, sweetheart. You know that, right?”  
   
Yuu simply nodded, easing his eyes close, basking in the loving attention Kouyou was giving him right now. It lasted for a good few seconds before Kouyou pulled out of Yuu’s body, flipping Yuu over on the bed and signaling for him to get on all fours.  
   
“It’s been so long since I played with this ass,” Kouyou sighed out happily, once Yuu had gotten into position and had sunk his head down into a pillow. Yuu arched his back down and his ass up into the air, curving his body in such a sensual manner it painted a perfectly vulgar image for his lover.  
   
“Will you fuck me now, Daddy?” Yuu begged, wriggling his ass this time round, having waited all these while for some action from the blond.  
   
_God_ , Yuu looked just like a horny feline in heat, and Kouyou’s eyes were unable to peel even a second away from the milky white, god-sculptured ass in front of him.  
   
“Of course I will,” Kouyou cooed, his hands running over Yuu’s fleshy cheeks once more, grabbing a generous handful of his ass. Then he spread them apart, and thrust himself back inside of Yuu in one swift movement.  
   
“Oh  _fuck_ ,” Kouyou cursed, clenching his teeth in a hiss at the familiar tightness wrapping around his cock. Yuu’s thighs shook under him, loud audible mewls leaving the raven’s mouth.  
   
“Uunn… Daddy…”  
   
Kouyou began moving immediately this time. The older man rocked in and out slowly at first, taking care to treat and pace his lover gently, just in case he injured the raven in any sort of way. But Yuu’s sweaty and lubed ass was quickly opening up to Kouyou’s cock, and it was so  _fucking_  easy to lose control and slide in to fuck the raven that the blond couldn’t help but go faster and  _faster_ and harder and  _harder_. Kouyou began slamming in and out of Yuu in an elevated pace, very quickly turning Yuu’s soft, subdued moans into high-pitched, kittenish ones.  
   
“Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!” Yuu’s nails desperately clung onto the white sheets as he cried out, his whole body quivering with the ferocity of Kouyou’s wild thrusts. Fuck, nothing truly could beat the feel of Kouyou’s cock after all. It always felt the best when Kouyou was inside of him like this, reminding him who was in control.  
   
“Daddy will be good to babydoll if babydoll is good to Daddy,” Kouyou spoke sweetly, giving a tight slap to Yuu’s ass as he continued riding it aggressively.  _Ugh,_ Yuu felt  _so_ good Kouyou was almost seeing stars. He kneaded the meaty mounds of Yuu’s ass under his hands, unable to get enough of the soft, bouncy fats he held in his palms. How Yuu’s body was so fucking sexy, Kouyou didn’t know.  _Yuu’s body is actual proof that human bodies were made to fuck_ , and Kouyou hadn’t realized he’d actually said his thoughts out loud until he heard a shy giggle from the raven underneath him.  
   
And then Kouyou was smirking at the raven’s response and slamming his cock back inside of Yuu, earning him a loud shameless moan from Yuu again. Yuu pushed himself back and desperately tried to meet Kouyou’s thrusts, even if he was always shuddering and helpless in positions like these, his intoxicated face lying weakly against his pillow.  
   
“Always trying to fuck yourself onto my cock,” Kouyou chuckled, licking his lips at the sensual sight. “Look at this filthy princess right here… acting like such a whore for me. You really resemble a horny kitten, you know that?” Oh, Kouyou had said another dirty thought of his out loud again.  
   
“Uuunnn… I  _want_  to be Daddy’s only kitten,” Yuu moaned out, still trying his best to lift his hips up and fuck himself against Kouyou. “I’m only a whore for Daddy… Yuu’s only like this for Daddy, Yuu swears...”  
   
“Of course you are,” Kouyou hummed approvingly, then pulled out from the raven, rolling Yuu’s frail body over so that the raven was lying on his back again.  
   
“I want to look at your face,” Kouyou explained, once he met Yuu’s puzzled stare. “Your ass is always a lovely view. But your face is prettier.”  
   
Yuu’s cheeks turned red. “You’re so…” Kouyou  _truly_  had to be thankful he was so fucking hot for a pervert.  
   
“So what?” Kouyou asked, though he didn’t pause to wait for a reply. He pulled Yuu up into his lap, seating Yuu in such a way that Yuu’s back was lying right up against Kouyou’s chest, and his ass was sinking right back down against Kouyou’s cock. Yuu wasn’t very sure what Kouyou was trying to do until the older man gripped at Yuu’s jaw with a hand and lifted it up, forcing him to look forward at the full-length mirror that’d always been in Kouyou’s bedroom, the one that’d led Yuu to wonder if Kouyou had any mirror fetishes the very first time he came here.  
   
“I want to fuck you like this and look at your pretty face with the mirror,” Kouyou murmured, his lips leaning over to trail kisses down the side of Yuu’s pale neck, at the same time almost as if he was inspecting to check if Yuu had gained any new hickeys in his absence. Yuu could watch every movement of Kouyou’s so clearly in the mirror, and the younger male found himself blushing at how…  _obvious_ Kouyou was. It was so easy to see and tell what Kouyou wanted from Yuu, now, and so easy to watch himself willingly allow Kouyou to manhandle him in his grasp, giving Kouyou full control.  
   
“Hn. All my love bites from before have disappeared.” Kouyou noted, his tongue darting out at several spots on Yuu’s neck, his teeth scraping lightly against Yuu’s skin. Yuu shut his eyes instinctively, a hand reaching up to grasp at Kouyou’s hair. He already knew what the blond wanted to do even before he did it – Kouyou wanted to mark his territory again, he wanted to brand him. Kouyou wouldn’t let anyone else have a claim over him, not when Kouyou was finally back to take care of Yuu.  
   
“Of course they’ve disappeared,” Yuu responded, biting back a pained moan as Kouyou sank his teeth down into his neck. “I’ve been so lonely in bed.”  
   
“You won’t be anymore,” Kouyou whispered back instantly, still biting, an arm of his possessively snaking around Yuu’s waist in a firm hold. His other arm reached down to Yuu’s cock, wrapping his fingers around Yuu’s sensitive flesh.  
   
“I’ll make sure I fuck you so much every night from now onwards, so much so that you’ll never feel complete without my cock inside of you again.” Kouyou’s hoarse, gritty voice saying such dirty things went straight to Yuu’s weeping cock, causing it to swell and twitch. “ _Oh_ , I promise you, princess. And I’m not the type to go back on  _these_ kind of promises.”  
   
“What if I get tired of you,” Yuu murmured shyly in reply, teasing. Kouyou thrust his cock up angrily into Yuu’s ass at that, startling the raven. “K-Kouyou…” Yuu cried out in a trembling voice, feeling Kouyou’s arm around him tighten further in a vice grip at his words.  
   
“You’re not allowed to get tired of me,” Kouyou breathed, bruising more of Yuu’s neck viciously with his teeth, before licking at it to clean the wound. “What will I do without you.” He said it as a statement, not a question.  
   
“You’re so rough with me today,” Yuu couldn’t help but lament, whimpering as he felt Kouyou begin to fuck his cock up again into him. The younger male followed Kouyou’s lead, lifting himself up and then sinking back down again Kouyou’s cock, slowly picking up the pace and rhythm until his tight ass was routinely bouncing up and down Kouyou’s girth, his muscles deliciously squeezing around Kouyou’s sizeable length. The older man did his part, pushing Yuu down as he bucked up into the raven, then holding Yuu back up again as he dragged his cock midway out, his pleasured breaths coming out in low grunts.  
   
Yuu’s words trailed off unintelligently as he was being fucked. “You’re so…  _Uunn_ …”  
   
_So possessive._  
   
“I missed you,” Kouyou sighed, as if in explanation, shutting his eyes close as he slipped his teeth out of Yuu’s neck and planted a sweet kiss against it in return, soothing Yuu’s red skin. “I missed you so fucking much, Yuu.”  
   
Yuu’s heart skipped a beat at his words. It wasn’t as if he didn’t already know  _that_ , but the way Kouyou could get so sentimental about the raven – even in his dominant, lovemaking state – tugged at Yuu’s heartstrings and truly made him feel loved by the blond. Perhaps Kouyou really wanted to stake his claim back on Yuu tonight, and ensure no other man could ever get their hands on the raven anymore, especially now that Kouyou was back.  
   
“I missed you too–” Yuu gasped out in surprise, his eyes fluttering shut, just as Kouyou’s hand began urgently stroking at his neglected cock.  
   
“K- _Kouyou_ …”  
   
Mmm, there was something different about Yuu moaning out Kouyou’s name instead of calling him Daddy that turned Kouyou on in a totally different way. Whichever name Yuu called, it was always so lewd.  _Kouyou_ sounded more intimate, but  _Daddy_ gave him complete control.  
   
“Open your eyes and look into the mirror,” Kouyou whispered, and Yuu nodded, complying with his instruction, fluttering his eyes open to meet his reflection.  
   
…Fuck, Yuu really looked like such a slut. Yuu could see Kouyou’s cock thrusting in and out of Yuu’s tight asshole so clearly like this, with Yuu’s slim legs spread right apart against Kouyou’s lap, exposing every inch of himself to the mirror. He could see the contrast of their bodies together – Yuu’s smaller frame leaning against Kouyou’s built one, Yuu’s long, dark hair against Kouyou’s blond, trimmed cut, Yuu’s teary face lying against Kouyou’s quietly pleasured one. Yuu’s cheeks turned peach pink as he continued watching Kouyou jerk him off rhythmically in the mirror, reducing Yuu to a sweaty, moaning, vocal mess; his eyes half-lidded and his pretty, pink-bitten lips parted open. Kouyou was groaning himself, but he had always been much more muted, with his breathy pants and smug gazes. His lips delivered gentle kisses to Yuu’s neck, quietly sucking at the newly purple-red bruises he’d made there, his own eyes in a lust-filled daze.  
   
Yuu could cum just from watching himself get fucked like this.  
   
“You like that, hmm?” Kouyou murmured, echoing Yuu’s thoughts, his low, raspy voice speaking right into Yuu’s ear. “You like seeing how small and helpless you are when Daddy fucks you like this. Don’t lie to me. You’re so fucking turned on by this.”  
   
Being dirty talked to and getting fucked hard right before a mirror – Yuu was so turned on that his own orgasm was imminent.  
   
“I like it when Daddy treats me roughly and speaks to me like I’m his whore,” Yuu choked out, in the midst of his already tortured cries and moans.  
   
“I’m… I’m nothing more than Daddy’s whore… Fuck…  _Fuck_!” Kouyou had pushed deeper inside of Yuu at this point in time, angling his thrusts slightly differently, the head of his thick cock hitting against that familiar tight spot, instantly causing Yuu to arch his back to ensure Kouyou continued fucking against his prostate in continuous thrusts.  
   
“ _Oh_ … oh my  _god_ … Oh my  _fucking_ god K-Kouyou!”  
   
Yuu was screaming now, a wonderful bundle of unspeakable sensations exploding right inside of him. “Fuck… It feels so good!  _Uuunnnn_ …! Please… There… Right  _there_ … Just fuck me good...!”  
   
“Mmm, so tight,” Kouyou groaned, liking how Yuu’s thighs were automatically clamping shut around him as if afraid they would lose Kouyou’s cock anytime soon. The added pressure against his cock made it feel even better, and combined with the sight of Yuu going absolutely senseless – riding up and down against him needily, the raven’s eyes rolling back to his head, his pretty mouth spilling out garbled words as he desperately sought more contact from Kouyou’s cock – Kouyou knew he wouldn’t last very long. Not when Yuu looked so fucking sexy. Not when Yuu was so perfect as his whore.  
   
“Only Daddy can make you cum this way,” Kouyou whispered, once again taking hold of Yuu’s cock and digging his nail into the slit. Pre-cum oozed out endlessly, and Kouyou knew Yuu was reaching his limit soon, too. “Right, princess? Only I can make you feel  _this_ good.”  
   
Another violent thrust up into Yuu’s prostate, taking the breath right out of Yuu’s lungs. Yuu screamed. “Yes, Daddy!”  
   
“Only princess can make Daddy feel this good, too,” Kouyou moaned, still snapping his hips forward, his pace becoming more erratic as he drew closer and closer to the edge, Yuu clenching down around him like a vice. He was so close now, and he could already feel himself beginning to spill, wet streaks running down his cock. “ _Oh_ … Fuck… Yuu… Yuu… Fuck… So good…”  
   
Yuu writhed in Kouyou’s grasp, his entire body shaking and trembling with absolute ecstasy as his orgasm hit him like a crashing wave.  
   
“I  _can’t_ … Fuck… Kouyou… Fuck!” Yuu sobbed, the force of his orgasm making the muscles of his ass clamp down impossibly tight around Kouyou’s cock even more. Yuu spilled right all over Kouyou’s hand, pearly white strands of release sliding down Kouyou’s fingers.  
   
In return, hot semen shot out from the tip of Kouyou’s cock, dirtying the insides of Yuu’s walls, filling him right up. Yuu moaned as he felt Kouyou’s arms wrap themselves tightly around Yuu’s waist, forcing him to remain in his position until Kouyou had fully emptied himself out into the raven. It was indescribable, the pleasure of having stained your lover so intimately like this.  
   
Yuu’s shoulders heaved as he attempted to catch his breath, his body falling limp in Kouyou’s arms. Kouyou panted heavily behind him, lips spreading into a small, satisfied smile at how fucking good that orgasm had been. He stroked at Yuu’s hair – now wet with sweat, with Yuu’s own scent – and kissed him there, going back to treating him gently once more.  
   
“You’re beautiful, you’re so beautiful, you know that? So, so beautiful…” Kouyou whispered softly, burying his nose into his hair. “Mmm… I can’t believe I’ll get to see this pretty face and touch this erotic body everyday from now on. I’m not going to spare you from anything at all.”  
   
Yuu’s mind was still in a post-orgasm hazy state of bliss, and he found himself mindlessly smiling in response. “Is that so. What makes you think I’ll…  _mmm_ … let you have your way with me.”  
   
Kouyou lowered his lips to Yuu’s ear, sucking lightly at his earlobe. “Even if you don’t… You like it when I’m rough with you, don’t you? Maybe I’ll need to tie you up to have my way with you… Then finger fuck you until you give up being stubborn and begin to plead for my cock.”  
   
Yuu wasn’t even embarrassed by his words anymore. “Oh…? You sound like you’ve been thinking up of many ideas to make me beg…” He squirmed his butt teasingly against Kouyou’s lap, knowing the older man’s cock was still fully situated inside his ass.  
   
“Trust me,” Kouyou gave a dry laugh, a hand sliding down to cup at Yuu’s butt cheek. “I’ve had a whole lonely month to think about you in many, many  _different_ scenarios. There are so many different ways I can play with you, my cute kitten… And don’t forget about all the lingerie we bought. It’s still in my closet.”  
   
Yuu’s sleepy eyes snapped open at the reminder. “ _Oh_ … The lingerie. I was starting to wonder what happened to those. I figured you might have burned them, or something.”  
   
“Burned them?” Kouyou scoffed at the thought, pulling Yuu closer to his chest. “You  _wish._  I’m going to implement a new rule around the house. You’re only allowed to walk around wearing lingerie and nothing else.”  
   
Yuu laughed, leaning his head back against Kouyou and nuzzling it into his neck. “Is that so. You want me walking around dressed like a porn star everyday? I’m not sure that’s a very good idea for the both of us.”  
   
“I think it’s a  _very_ healthy idea for me,” Kouyou grinned, delivering a light slap to Yuu’s ass. “Maybe not so much for your ass.”  
   
“But what if you’re at work and I have to answer the door,” Yuu giggled, watching as his every word began to ignite a flame once more from within Kouyou’s dark eyes. “What if I’m hungry and I order for pizza… and then some cute delivery boy appears before my doorstep. And then he sees me leaning against the door in my silk panties…”  
   
“Why do you keep saying things that make me want to punch non-existent men in the face,” Kouyou sighed, eyeing Yuu rather disapprovingly. Yuu just smiled up innocently to him. “Naughty babydoll. I trust you won’t accept any quality of cock other than mine because you’re so picky.”  
   
Yuu pretended to ponder over his statement for a second. “Hmm… Well, I  _do_  have high standards. And I have to admit your cock’s better than any other one I’ve ever had.”  
   
Kouyou gazed fondly to Yuu with a smile, sighing to himself once more at how adorable the younger raven was.  
   
“I can’t believe I have you here again,” Kouyou said softly, fingers threading through Yuu’s long hair. “I’m so happy. I feel absolutely complete. I can’t believe I ever wanted to lose this. I can’t believe I chose my pride over you.”  
   
Yuu snuggled up to Kouyou on his lap, circling his arms up around Kouyou’s neck.  
   
“I love you,” Yuu said, not knowing what else to say that could better convey his feelings to Kouyou.  
   
But it was exactly the perfect answer for his charming CEO to hear.  
   
“I love you more,” Kouyou murmured, kissing the side of Yuu’s head. “So much.”  
   
“I’m happiest with you,” Yuu smiled, his twinkling eyes gazing up into Kouyou’s blissful ones.  
   
“Me too,” Kouyou chuckled, shaking his head. “Hey, you know… about the pizza boy thing you mentioned earlier… It’s still on my mind. Now you’ve given me a new idea for some role-playing sex.”  
   
Yuu’s eyes widened in surprise at the sudden change in topic, but he laughed anyway, playfully punching Kouyou in the chest. “Pervert!”  
   
“Do you really think I’m going to let you go to sleep now?” Kouyou asked, a smug look on his face. “My cock’s still inside of you. And you’re so fucking hot. I thought you were begging earlier to be fucked so hard you couldn’t walk. That’d be a good idea, actually. Fucking you so hard until you have no choice but to stay in bed. I could only fuck you even more then.”  
   
“Stop saying all of these with a straight face,” Yuu pouted up to him, a stubborn look on his face. “You really should know that you’re so lucky to be born with such a pretty face to get away with… well, being who you are. I swear this could have gone so badly in an alternate universe and you could have turned out as a sex offender instead.”  
   
Kouyou laughed at Yuu’s train of thought. “ _Pretty_ face? I don’t know whether I should take that as a compliment or not from you. And what do you mean sex offender,  _hmm_?”  
   
“You’re lucky you’re so handsome… smart… intelligent… capable…  _rich_ ,” Yuu pointed out, but quickly folded his arms when he realized Kouyou’s pleased smile was widening with every single word he said. “Hey! You’re not supposed to be so happy about this!”  
   
“Go on,” Kouyou cooed, liking how Yuu seemed to be so  _accidentally_ dropping a flurry of compliments his way. “I like what I’m hearing. What else about me do you like?”  
   
Yuu’s cheeks puffed up infuriatedly. “Okay! Forget it! I’m only feeding your ego even more.”  
   
“Butttt babydolllll, I’m your…” Kouyou began quickly listing out, counting evidently with his fingers. “…handsome, smart, intelligent, capable, and rich lover, who by the way, is so lucky not to be sex offender.” Yuu sighed at his lover’s antics. “I’m only like this when I’m with you, princess. It  _really_  is your fault for having such a lewd body. You can’t blame me.”  
   
Yuu’s mouth hung open at the accusation. Kouyou was at it again! “You’re blaming  _me_ –”  
   
“Shhh,” Kouyou brought a finger to Yuu’s lips, silencing his younger lover immediately. “It’s okay. I forgive you. You just have to forgive me, too, for being so besotted with your body. Anyway, it’s time for you to have a change of clothing. Do you want to play a virgin nurse or a sexy police officer tonight?”  
   
“… _Takashima Kouyou_!”  
   
“Okay, so nurse it is. You’re going to change into the police officer costume afterwards, anyway, so it won’t make a difference. I love you, babydoll.”  
   
“Takashima, I  _fucking_  swear–”  
   
…But later on, the mere sight of Yuu dressed in a skimpy nurse costume, looking so indignant  _and_  shy _and_  embarrassed, led Kouyou to lose all ounce of self-control; and he ended up fucking Yuu so hard that night that they soon wore each other out. Kouyou then begrudgingly agreed to _only_  continue Yuu’s little ‘costume change’ tomorrow night, to which Yuu violently objected to – of course –  _even_  threatening to move out.  
   
Well, it wasn’t like Yuu would actually do it anyway. He loved Kouyou far too much. That sneaky, perverted bastard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh my fucking jesus christ that is the LONGEST smut I have ever written. by the way I deleted like three drafts of this chapter over a course of a week and worked on this final one over the span of a few days so :( I couldn't really get into it at first and then... I _really_ got into it.
> 
> and then this chapter became 19 pages in Microsoft Word. what the fuck @ me. no chill. Also I tried to find a way to split this chapter into two parts but it wouldn't make sense (my OCD self is crying because I always try to have the same amount of length each chapter) sooo T__T
> 
> by the way, sorry for the awfully slow update. I was busy with classes the past 2 weeks, but hopefully now I can update at a more regular pace again (I always say this and then disappear for weeks at a time. damn. sorry T_T)
> 
> I know sooo many of you must have been waiting for the smut to happen again-- AND IT'S FINALLY HERE. THEY'RE. FINALLY. FUCKING. AGAIN. AFTER. SO LONG. Hallelujah, I'm happy for Kouyou but also most importantly, Yuu's gay ass. Also. I'm sorry, my love for REALLY possessive Kouyou is really showing in this chapter..... I would like to apologize for it....... or not. :> And you guys finally know where all the lingerie went. Tell me one costume you want to see Yuu in and I'll write it out for you. ;)
> 
> Comments are sooo extremely encouraging as usual. ♡


	41. Chapter 41

“Babydoll, I’m going to work,” Kouyou uttered softly, his fingers lightly brushing against the surface of Yuu’s cheeks. Yuu, having been fast asleep all these while, produced a grumpy sound akin to a whine as Kouyou’s voice slowly stirred him awake. The raven’s eyelids were still firmly shut and his lips were still parted slightly, drawing in continuous small breaths.  
  
“Sorry, did I wake you?” Kouyou asked quietly, sounding rather apologetic. He leaned over to press a gentle kiss against his lover’s forehead, his fingers threading through Yuu’s long raven hair. “I’ll call you later, alright? I love you.”  
  
“Nnn…” Yuu answered, still barely registering what was going on. Kouyou guessed his younger lover must have been thoroughly exhausted after last night’s lovemaking, and decided to leave Yuu to rest for a while longer. But then as Kouyou gradually pulled away and got himself off the bed, Yuu’s eyes jolted wide open when he felt the weight next to him suddenly disappear.  
  
To his surprise, discernable in Yuu’s hazy, sleepy vision, Kouyou was already long dressed in his work suit with his blond hair neatly combed back, the ends of his long white sleeves already tightly cuffed around his wrists. How long had Kouyou already been awake?  
  
“Kou? Where are you going?”  
  
Kouyou could  _barely_  resist the raven when he called for Kouyou like this, sounding so vulnerable, so concerned, almost pleading for Kouyou to return to his side. Yuu was rubbing at his eyes now, still considerably tired, but there was just something  _so_  immensely adorable about the defenceless way that Yuu currently looked, all wrapped up in Kouyou’s thick white duvets, nothing clothing his body underneath. Yuu had fallen asleep quickly after yesterday’s rough lovemaking and Kouyou had taken care to wrap him closely into his arms over the course of the night, afraid the raven would get cold otherwise. And when Kouyou had woken up this morning and knew he’d no choice but to leave Yuu’s side then, Kouyou made sure to bundle and swathe Yuu’s precious frame around with a bunch of blankets, almost as if he was cocooning his babydoll lover up.  
  
“I have to head back to the office to settle some stuff,” Kouyou gently answered in return, a kind countenance on his face. “Akira has to brief me on some things now that I’m back. But I’ll try to finish up early so I can take you out to a nice dinner.”  
  
“Oh…” Yuu clutched the duvets closer to himself – unconsciously – for comfort. “Okay then. In the meantime, I’ll probably head back to my apartment to find Taka. I’ll tell him about me moving out, and then I’ll start packing up my stuff.”  
  
“Do you guys need help?” Kouyou asked, concerned at the thought. “Maybe after Akira and I are done with our work, we can come over to pick you guys up.”  
  
“It’s okay,” Yuu shook his head. “Go concentrate on your work! Anyway, Taka and I are on break right now. So we have plenty of time to waste.”  
  
Kouyou still looked apprehensive, but he didn’t press on the issue any further. “I’ll call you later, then, when I’m done. We’ll see how it goes from there.”  
  
“Okay,” Yuu answered obediently, simply nodding to the blond. Kouyou returned a soft smile, his weak heart throbbing wildly at the cute sight.  
  
“So I’ll head off now,” Kouyou sighed, a hint of reluctance in his eyes. “I’ll leave a spare key to this apartment on the kitchen counter.”  
  
“Mmm,” Yuu uttered as acknowledgement, almost ready to fall back to sleep. But then, watching Kouyou turn his back onto him and step out of the door, it suddenly occurred to the raven that he hadn’t yet fulfilled a very important task that was becoming of a good domestic lover.  
  
“Wait!” Yuu yelled out, waddling hastily out of bed, almost tripping over the long seams, still holding the white sheets up tightly around his stark naked body to protect his modesty. Kouyou stopped in his tracks at the sound of Yuu’s voice, turned around, and had to stifle a laugh at the unglamorous sight of his lover running over to him.  
  
“What’s wrong?” Kouyou asked, midway a chuckle, shaking his head at the sheer absurdity of Yuu’s actions sometimes.  
  
“I haven’t done my duty as your wife to give you a goodbye kiss,” Yuu huffed rather stubbornly in reply, just as he reached the blond. Kouyou’s laughter grew even louder, turning Yuu’s cheeks beat red. “…Why are you laughing at me!”  
  
“I apologize, you just resembled a cute penguin when you were  _attempting_  to waddle over to me,” Kouyou tried his best to contain his pleased smile. “And now my princess is calling himself my wife and telling me he wants to kiss me goodbye. So I’m a very happy man right now.”  
  
“I can’t believe you,” Yuu grumbled, turning his face away, refusing to look at Kouyou in the eye. “I make so much sacrifices and do  _so_  many things and all I get is you laughing at me–” The raven was immediately silenced with a swift kiss to the lips, Kouyou’s hand having lightly gripped at Yuu’s jaw to turn his head back to face him. “ _Mmm_!”  
  
It was a short kiss, their lips meeting for only less than a minute, but it was just enough to light up the blond’s face in delight.  
  
“You know how people need energy drinks to get them going throughout the day? I think my energy drink is you,” Kouyou teased, once their lips parted. Yuu couldn’t help the smile that quickly spread across his face upon hearing Kouyou’s corny words.  
  
“I really hate how disgustingly romantic you are,” Yuu sulked outloud.  
  
“I really love how easy it is to make you shy,” Kouyou countered, laughing loudly once more. “I really have to go now, sweetheart. Akira’s going to be annoyed if I’m late.”  
  
“Akira has Takanori, I’m sure he understands how hard it is to leave a lover as cute as me,” Yuu stuck his tongue out, warranting another chuckle from the blond.  
  
“Akira has way more self-control,” Kouyou sighed, eyeing the raven before him rather longingly. “And much more sensible than me. I’m too easily swayed by my emotions as a result of whatever you do to me. His ass would have probably stayed in the country to try and fix his relationship with you instead of running off to Europe like I did.”  
  
Yuu’s eyes gradually grew worried at the serious turn their conversation was suddenly taking. “But I love you, not him. I love my Kouyou. I don’t want any Akira.”  
  
Kouyou grinned as his heart trepidated blissfully in his chest at the sound of Yuu’s words, the tension in the air immediately clearing between them. “You’re impossible to resist, I swear.”  
  
“On that note,” Yuu narrowed his eyes to him, quickly fearing the man was about to harbour second thoughts about heading off to work. “What happened to ‘I have to go now, Akira will be mad at me’?”  
  
“Are you afraid I’ll bring you back to bed and torture you again?” Kouyou laughed, just as Yuu spun him around and started pushing at his back, out of the door.  
  
“Get your ass to work! Do I have to remind you I’m not going to marry a jobless man?”  
  
“I never even brought up marriage yet,” Kouyou teased, his mischievous eyes immediately meeting Yuu’s hot glare. “But I’m glad to know that you’re not opposed to it as long as I have a job.”  
  
_Oh,_ Kouyou would stop at nothing to tease Yuu, didn’t he?  
  
“Takashima, I  _fucking_ swear…!”  
  
~  
  
Yuu went back to sleep after that. That was, after spending at  _least_  another good ten minutes bickering with Kouyou. Yuu had no idea how they were going to live together if it was going to be  _that_ hard for either of them to leave each other’s presence. Yuu knew the only reason they even squabbled was to delay the other from leaving and – even though it was adorable how they couldn’t bear to stand being away from each other for too long – Yuu wondered if he would be affecting Kouyou’s work in the long run. Yuu quickly changed his stance on it, though, after  _really_  thinking it over again. They’d spent far too much time apart just because of Yuu’s insecurities. Yuu wouldn’t cast any doubts on what was right and what was wrong anymore; he just wanted to make Kouyou happy, be happy himself, and that was it. Yuu would have as much cute, petty arguments with Kouyou for as long as he lived if he so wanted to.  
  
Yuu later only woke up when it was approaching 12 noon. He groggily dragged himself to the bathroom then and washed himself up to prepare for his return back to his apartment. Yuu also stared at the toothbrushes in Kouyou’s bathroom then, fondfully noting that Kouyou had long left spare toothbrushes lying around for Yuu to use. The thought that Yuu would be moving more of his share of toiletries into Kouyou’s bathroom made the raven smile in delight. They’d talked about moving in so long ago, but  _now_ they were finally acting upon that decision, and Yuu couldn’t wait to see Kouyou everyday and kiss him  _and_ touch him  _and_  hug him to sleep. Being around the blond just made him so happy. And now they were  _finally_  getting the life they wanted.  
  
After tidying up Kouyou’s bed – which also led Yuu to realize that he’d have to start sharing household chores with the blond, which made him even more excited – Yuu changed into his clothes that Kouyou had so considerately picked up from the floor and lay upon a nearby chair. Yuu then texted Takanori that he was going home, and that he’d made plans with Kouyou that he needed to discuss as soon as possible with Takanori.  
  
Takanori replied immediately – four messages in a row – and needless to say; was extremely  _ecstatic._  
  
**_Takanori:_** _I bet you guys had a smaasshhhiiiinggg time together ;)_  
  
**_Takanori:_** _no seriously. DEETS when you get home._  
  
**_Takanori:_** _btw, you & Kouyou so owe me & Akira lunch. poor Akira bby had to throw so many hints at Kouyou to finally get it thru his head that you still loved him after all. sorry 2 say but Kouyou’s quite dense for a CEO_  
  
**_Takanori:_** _fine, he’s not that dense. he’s smart. BUT he’s always just so insecure when it comes to you. I’M GLAD YOU GUYS GOT BACK TOGETHER!!!!!! PARTY TIME_  
  
Yuu was  _definitely_  going to miss Takanori as his roommate.  
  
**_Yuu:_** _jesus christ Taka chill!!!!!!!!!! but yes I agree, Kou’s a pain in the ass sometimes!!!! it took me like 50 years to get him out of the house this morning. he’s annoying >< but so annoyingly cute_  
  
**_Yuu:_** _we need lunch together asap! i’ll talk to Kou later. ^^ but really thank you Taka, yesterday wouldn’t have happened without you or Akira_  
  
**_Takanori:_** _bahaha, it’s nothing, don’t worry. uh… btw is this the right time to say that… I hope u’ll forgive me for this but Akira kinda stayed over last night – UNPLANNED – and uh… his shirt became kinda… non-existent so he took one of ur long shirts to wear out this morning_  
  
**_Takanori:_** _HE WOULDN’T FIT IN ANY OF MY SHIRTS, IT WAS A WIDTH ISSUE. i’m still very sore about it so pls don’t talk about it_  
  
**_Yuu:_** _Taka, for the love of god…………….._  
  
**_Takanori:_** _i’m so sorry i love you (yuu)_  
  
Yeah, Yuu was  _certainly_ going to miss this little guy.  
  
~  
  
“I can’t believe Akira stayed over last night,” was the first thing Yuu vocalized once he entered back into their apartment, looking on as a mix of triumph, embarrassment and guilt washed instantly over Takanori’s face. His roommate was currently ironing clothes in the middle of the living room, and Yuu had to stifle back a laugh at how much Takanori’s expression was quickly mimicking one that was of a deer caught in the headlight with Yuu’s sudden confrontation. “You know, Taka, I don’t think that’s ever happened before.”  
  
“That’s because you’re always at home,” Takanori hurriedly pointed out, placing the iron back down, adamant on hiding his embarrassment. “I can’t bring Akira back if you’re, uh, still crying over Kouyou every night. It’s not exactly a very inviting sight  _or_ environment for Akira.”  
  
Yuu turned red-faced at the accusation. “Taka! I don’t… I don’t cry for Kouyou every night! I’ve since stopped doing that! Taka, I swear…”  
  
“I was kidding,” Takanori cackled, liking how easily it had been to turn the tables onto Yuu. “I’m sure you don’t cry over him anymore. Not with physical tears, anyway. I’m pretty sure you cry over Kouyou mentally twenty times a day.” That immediately earned him a stubborn glare from the raven.  
  
“No point trying to deny it to me, Yuu. But no, really, I’ve always been more fond of staying over at Akira’s place all these while. He lives alone, and his house is  _way_ bigger, and it makes me feel like a queen whenever I stay over. But he doesn’t ever stay long at our flat, and since you were  _definitely_  going to be gone for the night, I decided on impulse to take him home last night instead of heading back to his place again.  _You know_ , I read in Cosmo that a change of environment sometimes helps spice up the excitement.”  
  
Yuu narrowed his eyes to him – trust Takanori to shamelessly vocalize a sex tip in the middle of broad daylight. “Okay,  _fine._  But hearing that you took him back to our place is still a big surprise! It feels…” The raven eyed him with a cryptic smile. “…slightly more intimate than usual.”  
  
Takanori released a long sigh. “I don’t understand why you’re making a big deal out of it. I mean, I figured he’d like to better check out the kind of place I live in. We’re always spending time at either his apartment or a fancy restaurant, after all.”  
  
“I’m smelling progress,” Yuu still declared excitedly anyway, an eyebrow raised. “Wait, but on to more important things. Since Akira had to take one of my shirts… Did his own shirt get ripped into pieces?!”  
  
Now  _that_ was something they had to seriously talk about.  
  
“I never said ripped!” It was Takanori’s turn to look mortified at the  _accusation_. “It’s non-existent! There’s a difference!”  
  
“Jesus, Taka, I never pegged you as the type to be violent in bed…”  
  
“Okay, Yuu, if we want to venture into kinks now, let’s talk about the sexy lingerie you keep in your lower drawer that I know you and Kouyou are  _definitely_ into.”  
  
Yuu folded his arms. “That was… That is… not… I…” He couldn’t even blame Takanori for finding out – Yuu had made it plainly obvious by throwing bits and pieces of them into the laundry basket sometimes. Since Takanori and Yuu regularly took turns doing the laundry, the brunet was bound to find Yuu out sooner or later.  
  
“Still, I have to commend your fine lingerie selection,” Takanori gave a sly wink. “Very nice. You have my approval. Along with those jeans that make your ass pop right out. You seem to have a knack for choosing bottoms that show off your posterior perfectly.”  
  
Yuu huffed. “Fine, you flatter me. But don’t expect me to commend you on having ripped Akira’s shirt to pieces… That’s violent, Taka. You need to get that checked out.”  
  
The brunet let out a loud groan. “ _For the last time_ , I didn’t rip it into pieces! It’s just... It’s…” Takanori grimaced outwardly. “Let’s just say it’s no longer suitable for wearing. I didn’t say it wasn’t left intact!”  
  
“For someone who  _adores_ clothing, it’s amazing that you assisted in ruining one,” Yuu couldn’t help but scoff, though he did it playfully.  
  
“He’s rich, he can afford it,” Takanori rolled his eyes, though a smile was back upon his lips. “No, seriously. Akira waved it off and told me he’d just shop for another shirt later. And invited me to come along.”  
  
Yuu wasn’t surprised – Kouyou took him out for shopping all the time. “Typical,” Yuu laughed, shaking his head at how much Akira suddenly resembled Kouyou. They were both similar in status, after all. “Money will solve everything in the world for them.”  
  
“They aim to please,” Takanori sniggered at the thought. “Anyway, enough about Akira and his non-existent shirt. You need to tell me deets about yesterday! What happened last night? You didn’t even bother to text, so I assumed you guys were…  _pretty_  busy.”  
  
Yuu’s cheeks tinted pink at the insinuation. “Um… We just… He just took me out for lunch at the restaurant we went to on our very first date–”  
  
“Sweet. Very thoughtful. That’s 5 points for Kouyou.”  
  
“–and we apologized for our own shortcomings and how we should have explained ourselves to each other much earlier. We talked about our past and basically… poured out everything about us that was essential for the other to know. We just didn’t want any misunderstandings to occur in the future anymore.”  
  
“You guys are  _so_ dreamy,” Takanori sighed, sounding rather satisfied at the fruits of his labor. “I’m glad my efforts – and Akira’s – paid off. So what happened then after lunch?”  
  
“Um… we just talked until it was time for dinner, then he paid for some red wine and brought me back to his penthouse and… well, you know how these nights always go,” Yuu bit his lip, looking almost embarrassed to answer. How did Takanori always keep a straight face when he talked about how he spent his nights with Akira? “I have to say though, Kouyou _really_  was so demanding last night. I’m convinced enough by all that raging pent-up sexual tension he had that Kouyou really  _hasn’t_ been fucking anyone else in my absence.”  
  
Takanori giggled at that little tidbit. “Oh, boy. I’m sure he was rough. Kouyou looks like the type to be hiding some _serious_  kinks underneath that perfectly calm and charming front of his.”  
  
Yuu managed a laugh himself. “You noticed? I’m going to tell him I’m not the only one who think so now. I actually don’t mind it, though. I mean…”  _His dominance turns me on anyway_ , Yuu thought quietly to himself.  
  
“Kouyou’s really hot,” Takanori nodded. “And you have a submissive kink, anyway, so it all works out.”  
  
Yuu gawked to him. Takanori didn’t hold back from saying  _anything_ , did he?  
  
“Takanori!”  
  
“I’ve been living with you for a month, and we’ve been friends for much longer. I  _think_ I have a good idea of what kind of person you are, Yuu,” Takanori teased. “Also, knowing about the lingerie helped.”  
  
“I don’t know how Akira stands you,” Yuu lamented – though he did it rather lovingly. “I’d love to see how you’d act if Akira brought you out to a function. I’m sure you’d scare half his business partners off.”  
  
Yuu’s reply was met with – surprisingly – silence. Yuu was even starting to wonder if he’d accidentally said something wrong.  
  
“I’d like to think that’s the only reason he hasn’t brought me to one yet,” Takanori finally answered, a moment later, his voice sounding much more subdued and resigned this time. “You know, ‘cause I’d embarrass him, or something. I’m so… different from him.”  
  
Yuu had definitely touched upon something sensitive.  
  
The cheery demeanour Takanori had from before had completely vanished. Yuu could sense he’d accidentally opened up a can of worms, and that he was currently threading dangerous territories with Takanori. It shocked Yuu, though. Takanori was always such an overly zealous, confident and self-assured person that Yuu never doubted he’d feel any less when compared to Akira. Plus, Takanori was so well-versed in the art of romantic manipulation – not that it was necessarily  _bad_ , the man just knew how to coddle up to his lover to get what he wanted, and Takanori did care for Akira in his own way after all – and Akira was so tightly wrapped around Takanori’s fingers that Yuu didn’t think twice about their perfect relationship.  
  
On the few dates that Yuu had agreed to attend with them – Takanori had insisted on Yuu’s appearance, saying it wouldn’t do well for Yuu to stay at home alone too much – Yuu had found Akira to be nothing but loving and accommodating, and Takanori to be nothing but teasing and affectionate towards the older brunet. There was nothing  _off_ about the progression of their relationship at all. It ran so smoothly that Yuu was beginning to envy it himself.  
  
Yuu still couldn’t help but wonder sometimes if Takanori had any underlying issues with Akira that his roommate was holding back on voicing out, though. Because Yuu had been in Takanori’s place before, when he’d just started developing a relationship with Kouyou, and Yuu had to deal with all of his own insecurities, all of his  _I’m not good enough for him_ s and  _he’ll find someone better than me_ s. There was the disparity between the social classes of their boyfriends and them, the jarring age difference, and their thoroughly different lifestyles and manner of speech. It didn’t help that both Kouyou and Akira were so good-looking and had hunky builts to die for, too. They could have anyone they possibly wanted, and yet they chose Yuu and Takanori.  
  
But Takanori and Akira always appeared so perfect together, their conversations always flowing so seamlessly between each other, that Yuu didn’t think Takanori would ever be harbouring the same insecurities Yuu did himself when he first started out with Kouyou. It was apparent to Yuu now that Takanori felt the same, though. Takanori’s self-confidence had  _indeed_ been gradually diminishing because of his upper-class lover, and Yuu found his heart swelling at such a knowledge. To think that Akira’s sudden presence and intrusion into Takanori’s life could wither the haughty, confident person Yuu had always known Takanori to be made the raven sad. It’d personally taken Yuu such a long time to get over it, to get over his own struggle of not feeling good enough for Kouyou, before things could finally fall into place in their relationship.  
  
And now Yuu was witnessing Takanori go through it himself.  
  
“I’m sure you don’t embarrass him,” Yuu affirmed gently, his gaze softening as he eyed Takanori’s crestfallen face. The shorter man had begun turning his face away, lowering it in a bid to shield his disheartened expression; but Yuu knew Takanori well enough to know he was trying to salvage what was left of his pride. “Taka, these business functions take place maybe only twice a year. Besides, Kouyou has told me before he’s rather selective of the kind of events he attends. I’m sure Akira would bring you to one if given the chance.”  
  
“I don’t know about that,” Takanori cut him off abruptly. He seemed rather hesitant to divulge on his thoughts, but went ahead with it anyway. “I try to let it not get to me but it still does, somehow. I know I call Akira dumb, but he’s still so much smarter than me. He really does deserve someone who  _actually_ understands how to talk business to him and holds the same amount of intellect. Sometimes I speak to him and he’s so confused by the things I say but he humors me anyway, and I feel bad. Sometimes I think that  _he’s_  the one that has to dumb himself down for me.”  
  
Yuu’s stomach churned at his words. He hadn’t known Takanori felt so strongly about this. It also brought a whole new perspective to Yuu on how the raven could have possibly looked to an outsider when Yuu was thinking the exact same thoughts and going through the exact same thing – because Yuu had been worrying for  _nothing_  the whole time. Because at the end of the day, Kouyou and Yuu loved each other, and that fundamental love and trust was all they needed to keep their relationship going on. It didn’t matter how different they were. Their personalities complemented each other like jigsaw pieces that fit each other’s puzzles, and they made each other happy simply by being in each other’s presence. And  _that_ was all that mattered.  
  
“Taka, you and Akira have different passions and interests, and that’s okay,” Yuu rushed to reassure. “I don’t have a single clue what Kouyou sometimes talks about, either. And trust me, going to a business function is a lot more stress than it is glamorous. I absolutely hated it the whole time I was there. It made me feel like crap, I was intimidated by everyone there, and Kouyou had to convince me at the end of the night that I was still good enough for him even though the whole damn thing had made me feel like I wasn’t rich or smart enough for him. But you know what he said to me? That I wasn’t his secretary, that I was his lover, and that I wasn’t obligated to know things his secretary did. And all of that made sense to me. I had no business trying to be someone I’m not. That’s not the person he fell in love with in the first place.”  
  
Takanori sighed quietly, wrapping his arms self-consciously around himself. “That’s true. Kouyou’s very considerate of your feelings.”  
  
“He is,” Yuu beamed pridefully at the mention of his lover. He made sure not to get too carried away, though. “But Taka, Akira is, too. Akira cares a lot for you. I’ve gone out with you guys enough times to know he has his eyes fixated solely on you.”  
  
“He doesn’t know shit,” Takanori immediately muttered under his breath, sounding almost resentful. “I know he tries, but. He doesn’t… He doesn’t know how the littlest things affect me sometimes. And I get so mad when he’s nice to me and spoils me with things but I can’t do the same for him. It just doesn’t… It doesn’t feel equal at all.”  
  
Yuu knew what he meant. “I don’t think we can do much when it comes to that, Taka. You know they’re in a much better position than us when it comes to money. We’re only so young and we’re only university students, and there’s bound to be a huge difference between the way we function, and the way our lovers function. Besides, it’s nice to be pampered sometimes. But I know what you mean when you say they overdo it. They always do seem to go all out when it comes to spoiling their lover. Maybe you should talk to Akira about it.”  
  
Takanori only rolled his eyes in response. “I’ve tried telling Akira about how I felt but that just ended up…” He snorted loudly. “…in a lot of messy, frustrated sex. Akira doesn’t listen at all. He thinks I’m worrying over nothing and he’s always saying he has his finances intact. And maybe I truly am worrying over nothing, but all of this is slowly making me feel like shit. It’s making me feel bought over, like a doll, and I’m not exactly sure how long this relationship can actually last. I’m not sure if Akira’s treating it any seriously, either.”  
  
Yuu frowned, knowing Takanori was already getting it all wrong. Akira was  _so_ head over heels in love with Takanori that Yuu couldn’t fathom the older man only treating this relationship with him as a short fling.  
  
“He cares for you, Taka. I’m  _very_ sure you’re simply overthinking matters. You’ve said it before – they’re at an age where they have to start getting into a relationship that’s meant for the long run. If he didn’t think you a worthy candidate, if he didn’t think of you as someone that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, I doubt he’d be spending so much time and effort on you right now.”  
  
Takanori’s eyes still looked rather dispirited. “He’s just not one for grand gestures, and he’s not as vocal about his love for me as Kouyou is for you. I just… I just thought it’d be nice to try to get closer to him, you know, to get on the same level as him. Maybe even going to business functions, or meeting his clients, or  _something_ , something that will enable me to understand his life better. I feel so far away and foreign and treated like a trophy wife that Akira simply brings along for shopping trips and… and I just keep thinking about how Kouyou keeps doing these kind of things for you, you know, and I don’t understand Akira. If Kouyou’s so readily allowing you into his life, then why isn’t Akira doing the same? They’re best friends, aren’t they? Why… Why is Akira so different?”  
  
Yuu sighed, disliking how Takanori was comparing the two. Both Kouyou and Akira had good and bad attributes, and there wasn’t a solely perfect one out of the two. The grass always appeared greener on the other side, after all.  
  
“Taka… Taka, listen, what Kouyou does isn’t reflective of what Akira has to do. They’re both two  _very_  different people, despite being the bestest of friends. There’s so many good qualities about Akira that I wish Kouyou would have, but I still love Kouyou all the same for who he is. Akira’s a really mature, sensible, down-to-earth person, and he’s so level-headed when it comes to his relationship and work matters. Compared to Kouyou, Kouyou looks as though he has his head in the clouds all the time when it comes to me. Seriously, I really do admire how patient and strong-willed Akira is. But perhaps it’s this quality of his that makes him a much quieter, less vocal person when it comes to… grand love gestures. And I think Akira has his reasons for keeping his work and love life separate. I’m just taking a wild guess here, but I’m guessing he doesn’t want to bore you with it. I’m definitely certain Akira means no harm by it.”  
  
Yuu’s words slightly comforted Takanori. “I just don’t know what he’s thinking sometimes. I want to feel more secure about our relationship, but…”  
  
“Try talking to him again?” Yuu asked, hopeful. “And um, try not to have it end… with sex again. Perhaps you could try talking to him at another place. Like his office or something.”  _Not like that would deter Kouyou from fucking me,_ Yuu thought,  _but let’s hope Akira values office cleanliness more than Kouyou does._  
  
“Well… okay,” Takanori sighed, still not convinced. “I guess I’ll try again. I hope he doesn’t dismiss my feelings or think I’m just worrying over nothing again. I just… I’m not sure where our relationship is going right now and I’m not sure how I feel about it. It’s not like I’m at an age where I have to worry about these things, but Akira is. And I care about him enough to want to know what he’s planning for his future. It’s… I guess the comparison to Kouyou just set me off.” Takanori found himself confessing, as painful as it was to do so. “You know, especially with how serious Kouyou is with you. Also, you haven’t told me the plans you said you’d made with Kouyou. What’s up with that?”  
  
Yuu was  _especially_ reluctant to reveal it to Takanori now that the other man had just self-professed his jealousy for Yuu and Kouyou’s relationship.  
  
“It’s just,” Yuu bit his tongue, debating the lesser of two evils. He still couldn’t bring himself to lie right to Takanori’s face, though. “Um… Kouyou asked me if I wanted to still move into his place, and I said yes.”  
  
Takanori smiled, albeit weakly, at the good news. “Oh? That’s great. I’m really happy for you, Yuu. It makes sense, since you guys should be making up for lost time after being apart for so long. I guess I’ll have to start looking for a new roommate now.”  
  
Yuu’s face instantly fell at how visibly upset Takanori was, despite how forcefully the smaller man was attempting to keep it all together. Takanori must already be re-evaluating his own relationship with Akira once more. “Look, Taka, if me moving out poses any trouble for you, I can halt the move and wait for a while while you search for a new roommate–”  
  
“We should start packing,” Takanori declared, shrugging Yuu’s concern off. “Yuu, it’s fine. I’ll be fine on my own for now. I don’t want you to delay moving in with Kouyou any longer just because of these petty roommate issues, alright?”  
  
Yuu felt a wave of guilt instantly wash over him. He  _really_ wanted to move into Kouyou’s apartment as soon as he could, considering how long they’d delayed this decision of theirs already, but now he found himself in frantic worry over Takanori’s welfare. He couldn’t disappoint Kouyou, though. His blond lover was probably already expecting to see Yuu sleeping in his bed tonight.  
  
“You have to promise me you’ll talk to Akira about how you feel,” Yuu frowned, seeing that there was nothing much more he could do. “Promise me, okay? I’m still going to come over to spend time with you because Kouyou’s going to be at work half the time anyway. But don’t have me  _make_ Kouyou talk to Akira about this. I’m sure Akira will appreciate hearing this firsthand from you.”  
  
Takanori eased his eyes shut, and nodded his head stiffly to the raven.  
  
“Fine. I’ll talk to him, Yuu, I promise.”  
  
~  
  
“Someone’s ringing the bell!” Yuu yelled out all the way from his bedroom, just as he folded the last of his clothes into a small luggage of his. They’d spent almost the entire day helping Yuu pack up now, and Yuu was just finishing up the last portion of it.  
  
“I’ll get it!” Takanori called from the kitchen, having been tidying up some laundry that he’d started on since this afternoon.  
  
“I think it’s Kouyou, he texted to say he would pick me up around seven,” Yuu informed loudly, a smile making its way onto his face at the thought of seeing his charming CEO lover again.  
  
Takanori hurried to the front door, twisting the lock and hastily pulling it open to receive his guest. Correction,  _guests_. Kouyou had arrived just like Yuu said, but Takanori could also make out the familiar head of coffee brown hair standing behind the blond, and it only served to twist Takanori’s stomach in dread. Both of the men were still dressed in their work attire, fitting their molds perfectly as CEO and vice-president, and the way they stood so tall and important before Takanori just  _slightly_ intimidated him, who in turn felt much smaller in stance.  
  
“Hey Takanori,” Kouyou greeted, a friendly smile tugging at his lips. “It’s been a long time since we last talked. It’s so nice to see you again.”  
  
“It’s nice to see you again, too,” Takanori still brought himself to smirk, masking his fear, and his smug reaction instantly bewildered the blond. “You  _so_ owe Akira and I for bringing you and Yuu back together.”  
  
“Sweetheart, we did it because we care for them,” Akira’s voice gently chided him from the back.  
  
Kouyou stepped aside to allow the brunet behind him to pass, watching in silence as Akira made his way forward to lean over and cup at Takanori’s jaw, capturing the shorter man’s lips for a sweet and brief kiss. Takanori fluttered his eyes shut and allowed the older man to easily have his way with him. As silently annoyed as he was with his lover, Takanori couldn’t deny the way Akira made his stomach flutter with butterflies each time he felt those soft, gentle lips pressing against his.  
  
“No, it’s ‘cause you were mainly being a nosy asshole,” Takanori breathed out, a light shade of uncontrollable blush on his cheeks as he pulled away from the kiss. “And maybe, just a  _liiittle_ bit of maybe, I also wanted my friend to be happy again.”  
  
“Why do you always insist on pinning everything on me,” Akira chuckled, strong arms slithering down to Takanori’s waist, circling them around Takanori and bringing him into a firm hold. His head was bent down and his eyes held Takanori’s ones in a steady, adoring gaze. “Or do you just like riling me up?”  
  
“ _You’re_ the one that likes riling yourself up,” Takanori countered, a devilish grin on his face, all previous annoyance for Akira already melting away. “And I’ll pin anything on you if I want to, idiot.”  
  
“ _Oh_ , you’re definitely being the one pinned tonight–”  
  
“Um, guys, sorry, but where’s Yuu?” Kouyou hated to interrupt their intimate moment, but he’d spent the whole day longing to see his raven-haired lover again, and he didn’t want to spend a second longer without Yuu by his side – as well as subjecting himself to watching such uncomfortable displays of affection.  
  
“I’m here!” Yuu yelled from a distance, only running out of his room a second later, dashing right forth into Kouyou’s eager arms. Yuu burst into a fit of delighted giggles once Kouyou’s arms were enveloping him back into a tight embrace once more, the blond lowering his lips to Yuu’s hair as usual, bestowing him a cute kiss upon his head.  
  
“I’ve missed you,” Kouyou groaned, his gaze loving as he looked back down into Yuu’s elated eyes. “Are you done packing, love? I’ll give you a hand.”  
  
“You’ve only just seen me this morning, silly,” Yuu playfully punched his chest. “I’m more or less done with the packing. I don’t have much. I just need some help getting them down to your car. Are we having dinner all together?” The raven suddenly gestured over to the couple standing next to them, quickly reminding Kouyou of their existence.  
  
“Hi Akira!” Yuu waved shortly, only remembering to greet him now, slightly thrilled to see the brunet again.  
  
“Hey,” Akira waved back, his arms still tightly secured around Takanori’s waist. “Sorry about your shirt, by the way. I’ve sent it for dry cleaning. I’ll pass it to Kouyou when it’s done.”  
  
“What shirt?” Kouyou quickly asked, quizzical, sounding almost protective. “Why do you have Yuu’s shirt?”  
  
“Takanori ripped Akira’s shirt into pieces, so Akira had to borrow mine,” Yuu snickered gleefully in reply. Takanori’s eyes darted immediately to him, a defensive sparkle in his eye.  
  
“I  _did_  not! This is slander!”  
  
“Takanori did worse,” Akira coughed loudly out in reply, barely masking his words. Takanori instantly kneed him in the groin. “ _Honey_! Don’t torture little Rei!”  
  
Yuu’s eyes widened, flabbergasted. “Who the _hell_  is little–”  
  
“My sweet princess, it’s his genital,” Kouyou sighed, encircling his arms around Yuu’s head and pressing the raven closer into his chest. “Please don’t allow your pretty lips to speak of such vulgar words.”  
  
Akira snorted. “Takashima, that’s coming from a man who fucks his lover in every place possible. First the office, then in a changing room. I’m not entirely sure you have any right to say that to me right now.”  
  
“I think Akira naming his… um, genital, is kinda cute,” Yuu chimed in, hoping to help the brunet out a little.  
  
“So you want me to name mine too?” Kouyou asked, frowning.  
  
“Please don’t.”  
  
“Guys, I appreciate how much you adore talking about my lover’s cock, but I’m hungry,” Takanori whined, turning his head up to Akira. “Akiiii, are you planning to starve me to death? My perky ass needs nutrients.”  
  
Akira sighed helplessly. “And I’m guessing I’m responsible for watering that piece of perky ass.”  
  
Was  _that_ their definition of sweet talk? Yuu was completely mind-blown. Their exchanges were still adorable in their own way, though, Yuu couldn’t deny that. Akira was clearly very fond of Takanori, and Yuu wondered how the shorter man could possibly think otherwise of Akira’s feelings for him.  
  
Plus, it was amusing to compare their different relationships dynamics and see how contrasting they were. As compared to Akira, Kouyou was always  _so_ …  
  
“Sweetheart, is Mexican food okay with you?” Kouyou asked softly, fingers running through the raven’s long hair. “Akira and I made reservations.”  
  
… _so gentle_. Well, outside of bed, that was. The blond took great care to pamper Yuu like a princess on dates, only acting roughly with the raven when Yuu was willing and squirming underneath of him on bed.  
  
“I trust your taste in food,” Yuu nuzzled up cutely against Kouyou’s hand, smiling to him. “And I’m getting hungry, too.”  
  
“Don’t starve us anymore,” Takanori lamented, nestling his head against Akira’s chest. “I can already feel my ass sagging.”  
  
“You’re such a little imp,” Akira chuckled, pinching at the tip of Takanori’s nose. “Always begging to be fed, aren’t you?”  
  
“Don’t lie, you wouldn’t like me if I was any less thirsty …”  
  
“And this is why I’m so glad I’m already financially stable. God knows how many shirts we’re going to have to run through just in this relationship alone.”  
  
They  _really_ were so cute together; it was barely believable that Takanori could harbour any insecurities in this relationship at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My chapters are getting longer and longer ^^;; I'm not exactly sure why either.
> 
> I'm also not sure why I stayed up to update this. I hope you guys liked it! And yes, more Reituki :D I've been neglecting them a little. Okay, fine, a lot. I can already hear the squealing in the distance from some people for this chapter. >.>
> 
> I got asked to share some photos of how Yuu looks like in this story but I’m pretty sleepy right now so here’s >> [one](http://ic.pics.livejournal.com/sweetlolixo/21378195/66110/66110_600.png) << of how I imagine him to be when he's all spoilt and cute. XD And here’s one of Akira >> [here](http://ic.pics.livejournal.com/sweetlolixo/21378195/66398/66398_600.jpg) <<. I might share more photos gradually idk >.>
> 
> Comments are love as usual ♡


	42. Chapter 42

Both couples quickly made their way down to their respective cars after that. Kouyou and Akira had insisted on carrying down most of the packed boxes themselves, leaving Yuu only his small luggage to drag along, and Takanori only a lightweight, small-sized box to carry in his arms.  _Perfect for your small frame,_ Akira had teased, only to receive a death glare in return from his lover.  _This isn’t the only package that’s small_ , Takanori had answered, eyeing Akira’s crotch rather vulgarly. Yuu had burst out laughing at the sight, much to Akira’s embarrassment, while Kouyou had to pull Yuu away, hushing him, attempting to salvage what was left of his best friend’s dignity, despite holding back a chuckle or two himself.  
  
Whilst the older men busied themselves with the arranging of boxes in Kouyou’s car trunk, Yuu and Takanori stood to the side and spent their last few moments as roommates locked in a warm embrace together, speaking in soft tones to each other.  
  
“I’ll miss having you around so much,” Takanori admitted, genuinely sorry to see Yuu go. “It’ll be lonely going home to nobody around.”  
  
“We’ll still see each other at classes,” Yuu assured, smiling convincingly to his friend. “Nothing much will change, Taka. Anyway, I’ll still come over to spend time with you. Kouyou can’t possibly have time for me all day, he’s a CEO. I’ll be so bored at home.”  
  
“Bored at his billion-dollar penthouse?  _Pfft_ ,” Takanori snorted, almost rolling his eyes at the atrocity of that statement. “I’m pretty sure he has his own cinema installed somewhere in his house. And if he doesn’t, you could ask him to build one and he’d gladly do it for you.”  
  
“But it’s pointless watching movies without  _my_  Takanori,” Yuu whined with a pout, earning him a surprised giggle from his roommate.  
  
“Are you flirting with me now? Oh, Yuu, Yuu… I’m going to tell Kouyou about this and see what he thinks,” Takanori teased, though he was visibly pleased anyway, and smiling at what Yuu had said. “I’ll miss you too. Maybe I’ll go over to Kouyou’s place and see if we can discover any secret door in his house.  _Maybe_ Kouyou’s a serial killer. We don’t know. You know how they say picture-perfect men keep the most secrets?”  
  
Yuu grinned, nodding his head enthusiastically. “I think we’ll unearth some ground-breaking secrets about that unbelievably perfect CEO. I might be his next victim, you never know, he might have a habit of luring pretty young things into his penthouse and  _then_ …”  
  
“Okay, you’re kind of freaking me out,” Takanori laughed, cutting him short, warily looking over to Kouyou who was still standing by the side of his car, currently engaged in serious conversation with Akira. “I’m starting to not trust that Ken doll. I seriously think you should re-think your move.”  
  
Yuu returned his laugh, following his gaze to Kouyou. His lover  _truly_ looked too good to be true. “Taka, I think I’ve been with him long enough to know what kind of man he is. Kouyou treats me really well, don’t worry. He’s very sweet and considerate to me and he wouldn’t ever lay a finger on me.”  
  
Takanori let out a low sigh. “I know. Kouyou’s proven many times that he’s deserving of you. I’m just happy you’re finally getting your happy ending.”  
  
The way Takanori phrased it made Yuu’s heart gallop frenziedly. “My… happy ending? Is that what it is?” Because Yuu hadn’t really known what to feel about all of  _this_  just yet; all of it had happened so fast. Yuu hadn’t really had time to sit down and think about what all of it meant; hadn’t had time to savour just how far they’ve come, hadn’t had time to properly get over the shock of seeing Kouyou on national television, declaring his love for him – and  _then_ being taken out by the charming blond for a sweet, romantic day out after. Yuu had only been caught up in a whirlwind of happiness with Kouyou so far, and Yuu just knew he never wanted it to stop.  
  
But thinking about it now, thinking about everything they’d had to go through, thinking about all the times he’d hurt for Kouyou and Kouyou had hurt for him, thinking about all the  _I’m scared to love you_ s and the  _I never want to let you go_ s, Yuu just realized that perhaps this might be the happy ending he’d been pining for all these while.  
  
“You’re his princess, aren’t you?” Takanori smiled, almost bittersweetly. “He’s the perfect knight in shining armour that came back for you.”  
  
Yuu gazed to Kouyou, his eyes falling over his pale blond hair, his handsomely crafted features, his kind and gentle countenance, his heavenly sculpted muscles, his fragile beating heart; and Yuu decided Takanori was not entirely so wrong after all.  
  
But next to Kouyou stood Akira, who Yuu was now noticing still held Takanori’s yearning, upset gaze. And Yuu wanted nothing more than to know that Takanori would be okay.  
  
“You’ll talk to Akira about how you feel, right? You promise?” Yuu hurriedly asked, his forehead creasing in worry.  
  
“I’ll try,” Takanori said, eyes averting away from Akira. “I guess.”  
  
“No guessing,” Yuu huffed, folding his arms, irked at how Takanori seemed to lose all his self-confidence when it came to confronting his lover. “You’re so pro-active in patching other people’s love lives back up but you don’t seem to have courage to fix your own.”  
  
“Ouch. That stung, Yuu.”  
  
“Sorry… I’m just worried about you.”  
  
Very soon, Kouyou was closing the back of his trunk, and Akira was quickly yelling for them to head on back to their respective cars, ready to begin their drive to the restaurant.  
  
“Yuu! Takanori! Ready?”  
  
The raven turned to his friend beside him, a concerned expression on his face. “Ready?” Yuu asked Takanori softly.  
  
“I’ll try after the dinner,” Takanori finally gave in, uttering quietly. He forced one last smile up to the raven. “But let’s enjoy the dinner, alright? It’s our last night being roommates.”  
  
“Definitely,” Yuu smiled back, nodding his head. “You know I only care for you.”  
  
“I know, Yuu.”  
  
~  
  
As Yuu strapped himself down in the front seat of Kouyou’s car, he watched from the distance as Akira pulled the car door open for Takanori to get in – a gentlemanly act that immediately brought a wide smile to Yuu’s face. He had faith that two would be okay – he never doubted Akira’s feelings for Takanori, and he knew Takanori only needed to get his insecurities out in the open before Akira could rush to dissolve them. Yuu had been so reluctant to open up to Kouyou, too, and he’d spent the longest time thinking he was never good enough for the blond. But everything was always best resolved when you were being honest with your partner; Yuu’d had enough experiences to know that plain fact by now.  
  
“Why are you watching Takanori like that?” Kouyou curiously asked, fastening his seatbelt over himself. He started up the car and turned his head to check at the back, preparing to pull the car out of the parking lot.  
  
“Um… Takanori told me things today,” Yuu began, still a little unsure, having slight qualms if he should share this piece of information with the blond just yet. “Just… normal relationship insecurities.”  
  
Kouyou cocked an eyebrow up. “Relationship insecurities? They don’t seem to be having any issues. Well, not from what Akira tells me, anyway. And Akira doesn’t have any reason to lie to me.”  
  
“Mmm,” Yuu made a small sound of acknowledgement. “I’m sure he doesn’t. But then again, maybe Akira’s not perceptive to it yet…” the raven was hesitantly trailing off. “I’m not entirely sure if I can tell you these things just yet.”  
  
Kouyou’s face scrunched up in amusement, half-surprised that Yuu was acting so secretive around him. “Is that so? You know I won’t say anything to Akira if you don’t want me to, sweetheart. I’m only here to act as your listening ear, or if you ever need to hear my thoughts on something.”  
  
“I know,” Yuu sighed, feeling bad for hiding things from Kouyou all the same. Kouyou would never hide anything from him. “It’s just… Takanori even talked about you. About how you seem to treat me so seriously, and how Akira falls a little short in comparison. I’m thinking it’s because of that gala you took me out to, and the way you invited me to your office, and even… asking me to move in now. I mean… you’re always making sure you’re including me into your life. And I really am grateful for that.”  
  
Kouyou broke into low chuckles, brushing it off. “I’m head over heels in love with you.  _I’m_ the one that has been afraid I’ve been pushing myself onto you too much.” The blond looked fondfully over to his raven-haired lover. “But I’m just happy you seem to appreciate it. I only want you to be happy. I don’t understand why Takanori thinks Akira is falling short, though. Akira really does think highly of Takanori, and although he says it’s still a little too early to tell, Akira  _does_ think his relationship with Takanori will become permanent in his life. He’s given thought to possibly settling down with your friend in the future.”  
  
Yuu widened his eyes at the news. “Seriously?! Wow, Takanori wasn’t kidding when he said you guys planned far ahead.” Upon witnessing Kouyou’s confused frown, though, Yuu was quick to retract his statement. “Not that it’s a bad thing. I just… I just never really factored the whole age gap thing much in our relationship. It’s so easy to forget it.”  
  
“That’s because you’re so mature for your age,” Kouyou commented with a dry laugh. “But there are childish qualities to you, too, that make you so cute. I do have to plan ahead, though. If I weren’t thinking of spending the rest of my life with you, I wouldn’t have asked you to move in with me. Of course, I have to admit my slight paranoia contributed to it too. You’re so young, and you could change your mind anytime about me, and I wanted to make sure I had you in my grasp first…”  
  
“I won’t ever change my mind about you,” Yuu hastened to say, outstretching a hand to caress at the side of Kouyou’s arm soothingly. “I love you too much. I don’t want anyone else.”  
  
Kouyou’s lips curved up into a reassured smile. “I believe you.”  
  
“About Akira, though…” Yuu frowned, going back to the original subject matter once more. “He needs to vocalize all these things to Takanori. Like you always do for me. Takanori’s been feeling quite insecure with all of  _these_ …” Yuu gestured to Kouyou, and then to the back of the car’s trunk. “…going on. I think he just wants to know whether Akira’s treating their relationship a casual fling or a permanent thing.”  
  
Kouyou kept his eyes focused on Akira’s car in front of him as he drove. “Akira definitely is taking their relationship seriously. But Yuu, you know what type of person he is. He wants to take things slow. He’s afraid of rushing into things, and not for his own selfish reasons, either. He’s also afraid of scaring Takanori off. And I’m sure if Takanori voiced out his concerns, Akira would be more than happy to assure him that Akira  _does_ see a future with him.”  
  
Yuu nodded his head, knowing that what Kouyou was saying was right. “Akira’s just always been more… practical. And sensitive to how his lover might feel. Takanori’s such a free spirit, so I’m guessing Akira doesn’t think Taka wants to be tied down.”  
  
“Mmmhmm,” Kouyou agreed whole-heartedly. “Akira really does have his merits when it comes to that. He worries, too, of course, worries whether Takanori will find someone better than him in time to come, worries about Takanori finding someone more appropriate for his age. Akira just doesn’t vocalize any of his worries because he doesn’t want to bother Takanori with them. He’s content enough, now, making Takanori happy by taking him out on expensive dates and just… giving your friend what he wants. He doesn’t want to come across as too needy or clingy. That’s Akira’s idea of love.”  
  
Yuu pursed his lips into a frown, now that he knew more of Akira’s side of the situation. “See, that explains it all. Akira wants to do more with Taka, but he holds back for fear of scaring Taka off, while Taka wants Akira to do more with him, but he doesn’t tell Akira this because he’s afraid Akira just treats him like a casual fling. But they both like each other so much. It’s almost frustrating to see them like this.”  
  
Kouyou let out a gentle laugh. “Yuu sweetheart, you know they probably felt the same when we broke up, right? It’s always easier to look at the bigger picture when you’re not involved in it yourself. They probably feel stuck in their situation right now, and neither one of them want to risk anything by voicing their concerns out. So they are content to continue their relationship like this – going on flirty dates, spending long nights at each other’s places. Neither want to step out of their comfort zone.”  
  
Yuu glanced to Kouyou with an incredulous smile. “What you’re saying makes absolute sense.”  
  
“Contrary to what you _probably_  think, I can think straight when it comes to relationship matters, too,” Kouyou scoffed, pretending to look insulted.  
  
Yuu giggled, tilting his head as he gazed to Kouyou teasingly. “Really? The Kouyou I know is always so…  _hmm_ … different.”  
  
“That’s because you make me feel ten years younger again and reduce me to a horny sex maniac,” Kouyou muttered, smiling. “So yes, with you, I  _can’t_ think straight. All I think about when it comes to you is what type of costume you should be wearing tonight, which by the way, I already have an idea of. I’ve been thinking about it all day at work, too…”  
  
Yuu immediately narrowed his eyes in response. Trust Kouyou to lead such a serious conversational topic to…  _this._  
  
“I’m going to tell Takanori later that I’ve changed my mind and have decided not to move out of his flat after all.”  
  
“Buuutttt babydoll…”  
  
“No buts. I’ve decided!”  
  
“Don’t make me pull over onto the side of the road just so I can do  _things_  to you in an attempt to convince you to change your mind…”  
  
“What are you talking about– Wait, hold up,  _Takashima Kouyou_! Did I say you could stop the car! We can get a ticket for this! Don’t you dare touch me–  _Aaaaaaaaaaaah!_ ”  
  
~  
  
“Explain yourselves.”  
  
Akira’s disapproving tone was enough to make Yuu look down to his lap guiltily; his thighs squeezed together, his face full of blush. Next to him, Kouyou sat in his place with a rather arrogant smirk on his face, his tousled and disheveled blond hair telling Akira and Takanori all they needed to know about what had went down earlier during their car ride. They’d finally arrived at the Mexican restaurant after a short twenty-minute ride, but the moment Yuu and Kouyou had settled down into their seats, it was  _clear as day_  that they’d been up to something again. And so after they’d ordered their meals – whilst withstanding Akira and Takanori’s judgemental stares on them throughout – Yuu and Kouyou found themselves sitting through a bunch of gruelling questions from the other couple.  
  
“Nothing went on,” Yuu answered timidly, fingers fidgeting and pulling at the hems of his wrinkled shirt. “I swear. Don’t trust that shit-eating grin on Kouyou’s face. Kouyou just thinks he won because I promised him something…  _well_ , it’s not that important.”  
  
“Uh, except loverboy’s blond hair looks like some rough sexual hair pulling had just gone down ten minutes ago,” Takanori said, with an eyebrow raised. “And his cheek is mildly bruised. I assume some attempted punching also took place.”  
  
“Yuu does get violent sometimes,” Kouyou hummed, sounding rather satisfied.  
  
Yuu raised his right foot and instantly sent it crushing right down against Kouyou’s left foot. “Ow!  _Princess!_ I need to be able to drive us home later!”  
  
“Looks like Takanori isn’t the only violent one,” Akira joked in reply, but even _that_  earned him an unamused look from his lover. “OK, that was a bad joke. I take it back. Sorry babe. Anyway, seriously though, Kouyou. I was just teasing about you enjoying public sex, but at the rate that you’re going, you’re probably going to make it to the news one day with your tendency to do _it_ anywhere you go. Even in a car. I’m pretty sure that can get you arrested, actually.”  
  
“We did not have sex in a car,” Yuu adamantly defended himself. “Unlike this shameless CEO right here, I  _do_ have some dignity and morals I’d like to uphold. It’s not like I mind having sex in a car. But I mind it if we’re en route to having dinner in the middle of a road, goddammit!”  
  
Kouyou’s lips scrunched up into a visibly huge pout. He snaked an arm around Yuu’s waist, pulling his raven-haired lover close to him. “But you’re not mad at me, right, babydoll? I know you still love me.” His fingers stroked affectionately at Yuu’s sides, almost in a pleading manner.  
  
“Hmph,” was all Yuu said in response. He couldn’t ever stay mad at the blond for too long, though. Yuu subsequently leaned his body in to lay his head gently upon Kouyou’s shoulder, and it immediately brought a triumphant grin to Kouyou’s beaming face.  
  
“It’s a wonder what you guys can do in a twenty-minute drive…” Takanori mumbled interestedly to himself.  
  
“I feel like they’re almost challenging us at this point,” Akira said, casually raising his arm and placing it around Takanori’s shoulders, catching the smaller man off-guard. It instantly sent Takanori’s heart palpitating irregularly, and it was almost embarrassing just how easily Takanori melted into Akira’s every touch.  
  
It was impossible to resist the older man – Takanori liked him  _that_ much.  
  
“Maybe we need to start one-upping them,” Takanori snickered, smiling wryly, eyes flickering up – with slight hesitance – to gauge Akira’s reaction.  
  
“I’m pretty sure we’re already getting to that point,” Akira laughed, fingers drifting down to the side of Takanori’s face, pulling playfully at his cheek. “You’re the frisky one. I’ve never met someone as demanding as you.”  
  
“Oi, I’m assuming that’s supposed to be a compliment,” Takanori warned, glowering at the way Akira was pinching at his cheeks. “Haven’t you heard of demand and supply? I’m only servicing out what  _my_ buyer desires.”  
  
“You’re not in any position to be lecturing me about economics right now,” Akira chuckled. “You  _do_  know that I have a degree in that, right?”  
  
“I still don’t believe you have a degree at all,” A flirty giggle escaped from Takanori’s lips. “Hot men like you spend all their time going to the gym,  _not_ studying.”  
  
“I know it’s hard to believe I’m actually smart, but I’ll forgive your naivety,” Akira teased, lowering his face to Takanori’s. “You should be grateful your pretty face and tight ass makes up for your ignorance.” And Takanori was about to protest and defend his own intelligence too, but Akira’s lips were claiming his in the next second, their tongues briefly touching, leading Takanori to forget all the words he’d even planned to say.  
  
Kouyou and Yuu were barely bothered by the kiss before them, since their attention had been turned to each other so long ago.  
  
“Did I hit you too hard?” Yuu asked, with his worry-filled eyes, his voice apologetic. He brought his hand up to thumb lightly at Kouyou’s cheek, his brows furrowing at the red-tinted mark that the raven had accidentally left behind. He hadn’t meant to  _actually_ hurt Kouyou, but the older man had been messing around with him so much in the car that the raven had pushed him away too violently in a flurry of panic. “I hope it doesn’t leave a scar. I’ll help medicate it when we get home.”  
  
“It’s nothing, you don’t have to worry about me,” Kouyou murmured, a smitten grin on his face as he gazed affectionately back down to Yuu. “I didn’t feel anything. Your punch was so weak.”  
  
“Takashima…” Yuu folded his arms grumpily.  
  
“You’re like a kitten,” Kouyou cooed, planting a kiss at the top of Yuu’s head. “ _My_ kitten. I’m okay, I promise.”  
  
“Takanori can tell that you’re bruised, though,” Yuu interjected, still anxious for his lover. “We’ll go home and put some oilment on it. Or maybe I can ask this restaurant for a first-aid kit. They’re charging us sixty dollars per meal, they’re bound to have a first-aid kit somewhere, right?”  
  
“Yuu, I already said I don’t need anything,” Kouyou frowned, unwilling to let Yuu go through any trouble just for him. “We’ll go home and I’ll let you put something on it, okay? But there’s no urgent need for us to fix it now.”  
  
“But you’re hurt–”  
  
“No buts,” Kouyou was firm on having the final say in this. “I’m really happy you care so much, my little flower, but I’m fine. I can take care of myself. And at least now I know never to play with you in the car.”  
  
Yuu sulked. “You  _better_. It’s dangerous to be acting so reckless while we’re on the road! I’m not going to die by a car crash, okay? I’m going to live till old age and die peacefully in my sleep holding my lover’s hand!”  
  
Kouyou laughed. “I trust said lover is me?”  
  
“That is  _if_ we don’t die in a car crash first.”  
  
“I swear I’ll never do it again.”  
  
And then their food arrived.  
  
~  
  
“So, Kouyou, was Europe fun?” Takanori asked the blond, whilst chewing upon his food. “I’ve never actually been there. Did you do much sightseeing? Any interesting stories to tell?”  
  
Akira sniggered at the innocently asked question, and Takanori was quickly frowning to him. “What’s so funny?”  
  
“Yeah, Akira, what’s so funny?” Kouyou taunted, eyeing his best friend suspiciously. “Thanks for asking, Takanori. I did go to a few places to sight-see for awhile, but I spent most of my time there working.”  
  
“And crying,” Akira added. Kouyou shot him a vexed look.  _Don’t you dare_ , the blond’s face read. “Sorry, CEO. I forgot you had an image to upkeep in front of your lover.”  
  
“What about me?” Yuu asked, wide-eyed. “What did Kouyou do?” And then the raven’s fearful look slowly morphed into annoyance as his thoughts went astray. “Kou, did you go out partying with other men and women?”  
  
“Of course not,” Kouyou hastily cleared that up, frowning to Yuu. “I’d never be unfaithful to you.”  
  
“Quite the contrary of partying, actually,” Akira sighed mournfully at the memory, shaking his head. “The first week Kouyou was there, he stayed in bed the whole time. His room was a  _presidential suite_  in one of the most prestigious hotels in the region, mind you. And he barely left his room. The only thing he ordered from room service was for alcohol to be brought to him… and he’d probably have drank himself to death had I not forcefully demanded a video call with him.”  
  
Kouyou winced at the memory. “It wasn’t  _that_ bad…” Yuu’s jaw was agape at this point.  
  
“I had to order food for you,” Akira snorted. “I had to call up the hotel and arrange for meals to be brought to Kouyou 3 times a day to make sure that scrawny ass ate.”  
  
“My ass is  _not_  scrawny.”  
  
“Not anymore, of course. Not after I stepped in,” Akira proclaimed. “You were losing weight and on the path to self-destruction, basically. I even contemplated hiring a gym instructor to step in and physically drag you out of that room.”  
  
“I’d have called the cops and sued the shit out of him.”  
  
“You’d have to sue me first, because I paid him,” Akira pointed out. “And then you’d have lost your closest confidant  _and_ vice-president.”  
  
“But Kouyou said he spent most of his time working there,” Yuu frowned, confused. “How did he get better?”  
  
“Well, I didn’t want to eat at first,” Kouyou mumbled, glancing rather begrudgingly to Akira. “But the carts of food kept coming in every few hours and Akira kept yelling at me over the intercom. Also, I have no fucking idea why, but housekeeping entered my room at least twice a day. I’m pretty sure Akira paid them to come in more often just so they could chase me out of the room for at least half a day. And since I was forced to explore the hotel and stop, uh, drinking myself to sleep, I eventually found the gym and the pool and realized I could waste my time trying to get back into shape instead. And then it slowly got better.”  
  
“Thank god,” Akira heaved a sigh of relief. “I was even planning for a worst case scenario where I had to fly to Europe to tend to you myself.”  
  
“You guys are so cute,” Takanori laughed at the imagery. “Aki’s such a good friend to you.”  
  
“As painful as it is to admit it…” Kouyou coughed out, hiding his smile. “I’d probably not have survived that month without him.”  
  
“Don’t make me blush,” Akira joked. “Yuu will get jealous.”  
  
“No! I’m thankful for your help, Akira,” Yuu rushed to say, smiling gratefully to Akira. “I couldn’t take care of Kouyou then, so I’m really happy you took good care of him for me.”  
  
“I’m not even going to touch upon how hard it was to get through that thick skull of his that he still stood a chance to woo you back if he would fly his cowardly ass back,” Akira huffed. “Takanori was the main mastermind, though. I hadn’t wanted to step in and intrude upon anyone else’s relationship problems, since I didn’t see it my business to do so, but Takanori wouldn’t get off my case about it.”  
  
“Right. And look where I got them?” Takanori sassed. “I saved them! I saved both of their sex lives too! How could I let Yuu’s pricey lingerie go to waste? I bet only Kouyou could properly appreciate them in all of their glory.”  
  
“Taka…” Yuu cautioned.  
  
“Well, Takanori’s not exactly wrong,” Kouyou snickered over to the raven.  
  
“Don’t talk to me, asswipe, you spent one whole week drinking yourself to sleep.”  
  
“Hey– Look at what you’ve done, Akira! Now Yuu’s using this information against me!”  
  
“Okay, okay, settle down, children. Why don’t you just make up and go into the washroom and have some good ol’ fashioned make-up sex?”  
  
“Takanori, if I hear one more word leaving that potty mouth of yours, I’m going to be forced to spill your embarrassing sex stories to Akira.”  
  
“Oh, now  _that’s_ interesting. Do share, Yuu.”  
  
“Is this the game we’re playing now? Shiroyama Yuu, don’t you dare think you have the upperhand in this just because you have some dirt on me–”  
  
“Alright, everyone, listen up. So, one time, Takanori had to get admitted into the ER because he accidentally shoved up a–”  
  
“SHIROYAMA YUU!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jeska ([@FAT_MAGGOT](http://twitter.com/fat_maggot)) made me laugh so much when she shared me what she’d thought _actually_ went down while Kouyou was in Europe. His scrawny ass lying around depressed in bed while Akira called up the hotel to serve him trays of food all day to make sure he ate. <3 This BROTP right here. Kouyou and Akira are the ultimate bromance~ So this lil part is for you, Jeska ;D
> 
> ~~I also may or may not have tried to slip in a little Aoiki into here bc I’ve recently been so on board with that ship~~
> 
> Let's try to play a guessing game of what Takanori "shoved" up.... to land himself in ER. ;)


	43. Chapter 43

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this entire chapter to [this song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oI-BsWbIg4) (drive / Halsey) :D

The dinner lasted long into the night. The older men couldn’t drink themselves, of course, since they had to drive later; but they’d generously ordered wine for their younger lovers, which had led to even more babbling, even more giggling, even more humiliating stories shared over the course of their dinner. It even became a challenge at some point, to see who could embarrass the other further, even though both their faces were equally intoxicated, equally blushing. Takanori was still able to speak and think coherently, but Yuu had it the worst; his body was already slumped over Kouyou’s shoulder, his head buried into Kouyou’s chest, by the end of the night.  
   
“I think I better take him home,” Kouyou said, sighing as he wrapped an arm around his drunken lover’s limp body. “Yuu’s too far gone.”  
   
“I’m not, you fucking asshole,” Yuu moaned out, fists weakly punching against Kouyou’s chest. “You just want to take me home so you can–”  
   
“Shh, babydoll,” Kouyou silenced him, patting gently at his hair. “I’ll take you home so we can have a nice bath and have a good rest after.”  
   
“I think it’s time for us to go, too,” Akira informed, glancing over to his lover. Takanori held a glass of wine in hand, his eyes looking mildly dazed. “Taka will probably need some rest, too.”  
   
“I’m not as drunk as he is,” Takanori sniffed. “I can handle my liquor just fine.”  
   
“But it’s getting late, anyway,” Akira frowned, turning to look at the watch on his wrist. “The sooner we get home, the better.”  
   
“We have a meeting early in the morning tomorrow,” Kouyou reminded his vice-president. “It’s best if we turn in early.”  
   
“That, too,” Akira agreed, listening to Takanori grumble defeatedly in response. “Let’s go, alright? Can you stand up on your own, honey?”  
   
“Whatever,” Takanori groaned, allowing his older lover to slowly hook his arm over his, before pulling them both up and out of their seats. Takanori couldn’t help but stumble and fall right into Akira’s arms, basking in the warmth of his lover’s embrace – even if Takanori  _really_ wasn’t truly that tipsy. But Akira’s strong hold around him made him feel sheltered and safe, and Takanori found himself relishing in the feeling even in his semi-intoxicated state.  
   
Kouyou, on the other hand, carried Yuu’s body right up into his arms bridal style; the smaller raven’s face nestled right up against his chest.  
   
“See you, Yuu,” Takanori slurred, just as Akira tugged his body along, walking right past Kouyou. “Text me, okay?”  
   
“Mmm,” Yuu mewled, half-lidded eyes barely gazing straight to Takanori. Kouyou’s fingers combed through his long raven hair, slowly petting him to sleep, almost as if he were a kitten. “Remember what you promised, Taka… I’ll miss you…”  
   
“I’ll miss you too,” was all Takanori could answer to Yuu, a sorry smile on his face as Akira led him away.  
   
~  
   
“So, where to? Your place, or mine?” Akira questioned, as he started the car engine again and buckled himself back into his seat. Takanori lay his head back against the cushiony head of his chair, feeling the trepidations run right under his skin as the engine revved up to life underneath him.  
   
“Are you asking me if I’m going to pass out immediately once I get home or am I energetic enough to stay over at your place and keep you entertained for a while?” Takanori asked back in a teasing voice, a flirtatious grin on his face, his legs curling up against his seat to make himself more comfortable.  
   
Akira didn’t look the slightest amused. “It’s late, and like Kouyou said, I have a meeting tomorrow. Besides, you’re tired. So we’ll turn in early today. I just want to know if you’d prefer to head back home or stay over at my place.”  
   
Takanori flinched at his solemn tone, and the grin promptly slid off his face. Akira could get  _so_ serious and practical sometimes, it wasn’t fun at all to joke around with him. “Fine. Your place, then. Your bed is bigger.”  
   
“Okay, sweetheart,” Akira complied, placing a hand on the steering wheel and another on the stick shift, beginning to pull his car out of the road. “We’ll go back to my place. You can sleep for the time being. It’ll be a half hour drive.”  
   
Takanori let slip a disgruntled moan, and curled up further into his seat like a child. “I’m not going to sleep. I’m not tired.”  
   
“Yes you are,” Akira laughed quietly, looking over to his lover. “I’ll have to carry you up my apartment again when you fall asleep. Not that I’m complaining – you’re very light. And cuddly. Like a teddy bear.”  
   
“Teddy bears are fat,” Takanori sulked. “Why do I feel like that was both a compliment  _and_ insult entwined into one?”  
   
“You are _not_  fat,” Akira frowned, insisting. “You’re just the perfect size for me to hold to go to sleep. You always like to think the worst of me, don’t you? You know how much I adore you.”  
   
“Yeah, adore me… like a stuffed animal,” Takanori blatantly pointed out, the words leaving his mouth faster than his inebriated mind could properly think them through. “One that you can throw away anytime whenever you’re tired of it. Stuffed toys aren’t permanent, you know? They’re only meant to accompany you until you grow up and find something better.”  
   
Akira was stunned to silence, his eyes going wide at the absurd allegation –  _how could Takanori possibly think I’d do that to him?_  – but he brushed it off simply as part of Takanori’s drunken speech, and not something his smaller lover would have truly said or felt if he had been more conscious.  
   
“Sweetheart,” Akira found himself replying, a moment later, filling up the tense silence in the car. “Go to sleep, alright? I’ll wake you when we arrive.”  
   
Takanori clutched at his safety belt, hugging it absentmindedly for comfort, his eyes still forcefully straining to open.  
   
“Aki, what do you think about Kouyou and Yuu?”  
   
The question came as another surprise to the brunet. But Akira still answered, anyway, if only to pacify his lover and hopefully tire him out enough eventually to sleep.  
   
“What do you mean? They’re nice people.”  
   
Takanori let out a mindless giggle, throwing his hands up in the air. “Not that, silly. I mean… About moving in. Them moving in together. Staying together. Seeing each other everyday. Leading a domestic life together.”  
   
Akira was even more baffled, now, by Takanori’s sudden interest in Yuu and Kouyou’s new life. Perhaps his lover himself wasn’t even hearing himself when he spoke, and was vacuously going through random topics to talk about in his disoriented state.  
   
“Well, hun, I think it’ll be a good move for them. They’re pretty serious about each other, especially Kouyou –  _god_ , the past month has been hell with him regularly calling me up to ask if Yuu will like it if he did this, or that, if he bought this, or that – and I’m guessing those whiny calls of his will finally stop now that they get to see each other more often. Yuu’s a good match for Kouyou, and Kouyou will definitely treat him well, so I have no worries on my end. I’m just glad they’re finally able to be together after all they’ve been through.”  
   
This time, Takanori remained quiet for a while before he spoke again, almost as if he was mulling over Akira’s answer thoroughly, contemplating over what he’d just said.  
   
“Aki,” Takanori called out softly, his voice sounding much gentler, much more hesitant this time. Akira always only saw this sentimental side of Takanori either after sex, when Takanori was in a particularly romantic mood and was begging for a cuddle; or when Akira was witnessing Takanori waking up next to him in the morning, still very much sleepy and vulnerable-looking. The sight of Takanori like this – looking much more fragile and frail, a sharp contrast with how self-assured and zealous he was most times – always tugged at Akira’s heartstrings, and led Akira to think he’d do  _anything_ for him.  
   
“You know… my flat will be empty with Yuu gone.”  
   
Akira steered lightly at a curve, not giving much thought to Takanori’s words.  
   
“I guess it will. You mentioned possibly getting a new roommate, right?”  
   
Takanori fell silent again at his answer, this time with a bitter, disappointed look sparking up deeply from within his eyes. Then, scoffing rather loudly, Takanori turned his head to face away from the older man.  
   
“Yeah. Roommate. I better start finding one soon.”  
   
“I could help you look around, too,” Akira said. “There are some new interns and young executives joining the company soon. Perhaps I could ask them if they have friends who are looking around for a place.”  
   
Without even a second thought, Takanori was replying his lover rather scornfully, “I don’t need your help.”  
   
Akira felt a cold chill descend upon him at the kind of tone Takanori was using with him, but he bit back the words he wanted to say, excusing Takanori’s frigid attitude due to his drunken state.  
   
“Aki,” Takanori began again, after another moment of silence, sounding much harsher this time round. “Do you have any plans for us?”  
   
His question had been asked directly, and straight to the point; there was no way Akira could misunderstand this. Perhaps it was the liquor that had helped with Takanori’s confidence; perhaps it was his unwillingness to sit any further in silence, always wondering, always hoping, always waiting for Akira to make the first move; perhaps it was him, finally getting tired, completely exhausted from constantly internally debating whether he was good enough for the older man; perhaps it was because of Yuu, and the last promise Takanori had made him.  
   
“How many more times will I be sitting in this car?” Takanori finally snapped, courage quickly building up in his chest, the decibel of his voice slowly rising higher with every word that left his lips. “How many more dates do we have left? How many more nights will I spend at your place? How many more  _I love you_ s do I have left to say when I wish you goodnight?”  
   
The frown on Akira’s face deepened; he’d understood the question all right, but he was still unable to comprehend where Takanori was going with this. Why was Takanori speaking as if he were ready to leave Akira?  
   
“Are you breaking up with me?” Akira questioned back, slightly aggravated now, even slightly anxious; though he still visibly kept his calm. Takanori had had a few wine glasses after all, and Akira wasn’t going to let this escalate into a full-blown argument when Takanori might not even remember any of this the morning after. “What’s wrong? Why are you saying these kind of things? They’re coming right out of nowhere... I don’t understand.”  
   
“Are  _you_ breaking up with me, is what  _I_ want to ask!” Takanori suddenly yelled in an outburst, his torn voice coming out all hoarse and croaked. Akira had never seen Takanori look so angered before, and it terrified him. “It’ll happen one day, won’t it? The day where I leave this car and never come back. What exactly am I to you? Why aren’t you answering me?!”  
   
Akira sucked in a breath, glancing over anxiously to his lover. “Taka, my love… I think you’re misunderstanding things. You’re tired, just go to sleep, alright? We’ll talk about this tomorrow. You might not even remember this.”  
   
“Remember what?” Takanori’s voice quickly transformed into sobs once he realized he wouldn’t be getting the answers he’d so wanted from his lover. He closed his eyes shut, swallowing down the anguish that was threatening to spill out in the form of hot tears. “You won’t even talk to me about this. I keep trying, but you don’t even care. I don’t know what you’re thinking. I don’t know what we are.”  
   
“Sweetheart, you know I  _adore_ you–”  
   
“Adoration’s not enough for me,” Takanori cried out, persistent in getting Akira to say  _something_ – anything; if only to appease him for tonight and assure him that Takanori hadn’t made a mistake by getting into this relationship after all. “Am I only a body to pleasure you when you’re lonely at night, and a doll for you to spoil when you’re bored during daytime?”  
   
“That’s not true,” Akira sighed, trying to coax his lover otherwise. “Babe, you  _know_ that’s not true. Why do you keep saying things that devalue yourself when you know you’re worth so much more, especially in my eyes?”  
   
“I’m so jealous of Yuu,” Takanori confessed, looking straight at Akira in the eye. “He has everything. Kouyou loves him so much. Kouyou brings him out  _everywhere_. Yuu knows everything about him. But you never truly talked to me about work, and you’ve never brought me out to even one function. You even told me that one time you disliked it if I stayed at your office for too long. I don’t understand why you keep me away from your life like  _I’m_ the plague. And right now I’m starting to feel like the only thing we really enjoy with each other is good sex and good food.”  
   
The way Takanori compared Akira to his best friend instantly infuriated the older man, and it severely wounded his pride. The next time Akira spoke, he was seething with anger; taken aback by how intentionally hurtful Takanori was acting. And without reason, too.  
   
“And what’s wrong with that? Aren’t we having a good time with each other? I thought our relationship was going really well so far. I don’t understand why you’re suddenly so upset, Taka. And why the fuck are you comparing me with Kouyou? We’re two entirely different people – unless you’d prefer going out with him, of course, in which case I have some bad news for you. He’s taken. And here I thought you truly liked me for who I really was.”  
   
Takanori’s heart shattered completely in the quietness that followed soon thereafter.  
   
Akira didn’t get it at all. No, men like  _these_ never got it. They wouldn’t, would they? Akira couldn’t see it at all. What Takanori wanted, and what Takanori longed for. Every single time Takanori even attempted to broach this topic, Akira always found a way to steer away from it. Takanori couldn’t pinpoint it to sheer stupidity at this point, or just plain ignorance.  
   
“Stop the car.” Takanori demanded, immediately unbuckling his seat belt.  
   
Akira couldn’t believe his ears, his heart almost falling right out of his chest. “What?”  
   
“Stop the car. I’m getting out.”  
   
“ _What_?!” Akira gritted his teeth, enraged by such an order. “Taka, we’re in the middle of a highway.”  
   
“So? I’ll walk home.” Takanori remained defiant, his hand reaching threateningly for the door handle. “Stop the car or I’ll open the door and forcefully roll myself out.”  
   
“Taka, it’s almost midnight. I’m  _not_ going to let you walk home. We’re driving home, and then I’ll tuck you into bed.”  
   
“And let you treat me like a fucking child? I’m nothing to you, anyway, so you can stop this fucking love pretence crap.”  
   
“ _You’re_ nothing to me?!” Akira repeated, his eyes wide in awe. How could Takanori possibly think  _that_ , after all Akira had done for him? “What the fuck are you on? What’s going on? Why are you so upset? Is this because Kouyou took Yuu out to that gala that I never brought you to? You know I don’t always have time to attend all these functions, but if I ever do, I’d take you. And I didn’t take you that time because I’d only just gotten to know you – you know I hate rushing into things. I’m not hiding you away. I would never. I don’t know how I managed to make you feel like  _it,_ but that was never my intention to do so.”  
   
“But I feel hidden away,” Takanori immediately countered, pulling his hands back to his eyes, wiping angrily at the tears that’d slowly started seeping out. Fuck. He hadn’t meant to cry. “And these feelings are mine, and mine alone, to validate. I feel like I’m being bought over. You pay for every date. I just want to know more about you. I want to stay long, by your side, at the office. I like to watch you work. I make meals for you because I want more excuses to see you. I want,” Takanori paused in between, gasping harrowingly for breath, his hands wiping furiously at the tears that wouldn’t stop spilling.  
   
“I want  _so_ much, for  _this_ to be permanent. Waking up everyday with thoughts of you. Knowing I’ll see you again. I’d make meals for you everyday as long as I could. I want to do things for you, too. I’m imagining a future with you, already, but I don’t even know if you feel the same way. And I hate it, I  _hate_ this uncertainty–” Takanori brought his knees up, hugging them to himself for comfort.  
   
“I hate not knowing what you feel about me. Because you’ve never spoken about our future, not even once. And maybe it’s too fast, maybe you’ve always taken things slow. But I believe we’ve reached a point where we need to decide if this is serious, or not. Because you’re not going to be young forever, and I care for you enough to want to know if you want me in your life.”  
   
Takanori had exhausted his entire breath. And there was nothing else he’d held back. Nothing left unspoken. Everything had been said out loud and clear. Now he only waited to hear if Akira felt the same, too. Because he was ready to leave if Akira didn’t, Takanori really was. He was ready to let go if Akira so wanted to.  
   
Akira’s irked features gradually softened once Takanori’s words settled down into his mind. And he suddenly understood Takanori’s sentiment. And everything was slowly becoming crystal clear.  
   
And he began to understand why Takanori was so upset he was crying.  
   
“I want you in my life,” Akira spoke softly, afraid of aggravating Takanori’s wrecked emotions any further, afraid his smaller lover would truly act on what he’d promised earlier – opening the car door and actually leaving him. Perhaps even for good. Looking over to Takanori now, with droplets of tears rolling down his pale, pretty face, Akira’s heart was aching so much he could barely bear it, and Akira wanted nothing more than for it to stop.  
   
“Taka sweetheart, I love you. I don’t know what else I can say to convince you – but I do. I love you, and I see you in my future, I really do.”  
   
Takanori choked on his own sobs, almost breathing out a sigh of relief, since he’d thought he’d truly lost Akira when the older man had snapped at him minutes ago – but he couldn’t be too sure. He shielded his face away from his lover, still doubting Akira’s true sincerity.  
   
“But you… you don’t want me in any part of your life.”  
   
“That’s bullshit,” Akira firmly denied that preposterous claim. “Taka, the only reason why I keep you away from the office is because I like to keep my work life and personal life separate. Plus, I never want to bore you. You’re so… different. You’re such a gorgeous being and I never want to dull our conversations with things I do. I hadn’t realized I was coming across as exclusive, but trust me on this – I never meant to hurt you.”  
   
“But I like staying by your side, watching you work,” Takanori protested, his sobs gently dying down, now that Akira was properly providing him the explanations he’d been seeking for right from the very beginning. “I don’t like it when you keep me away. It just makes me feel like I’m not smart enough. Or you don’t see me fit, on your level, to talk with you about these things. Even if I don’t understand anything. I just want to feel close to you.”  
   
“You’re as closest as you can be, to me, already,” Akira’s voice dropped to a low whisper, one hand leaving the steering wheel to caress assuringly at Takanori’s lap. “Taka, I’m the closest to myself when I’m with you. I love you. You get to see the side of me that nobody else sees. You get to see me when I take you out on dates, genuinely happy; you get to see me when I fall asleep next to you and hold you in my arms, murmuring about how much I adore you. You get to see the bits and pieces of me, you get to witness the best and worst parts of me. I wake up every morning with you in my arms, thinking about how much I want you to stay and how much I want this to last forever.”  
   
“But you never tell me any of that,” Takanori gazed back up to him, hope illuminating his tear-stained eyes. “Why don’t you?”  
   
The older man shook his head, a regretful smile on his face, as if he was only now finally understanding why this argument had started in the first place.  
   
“Because I never want to scare you off,” Akira answered truthfully, gazing affectionately over to Takanori. “You’re so… full of life. You make me feel young again. You looked as if you could take off anytime. I’m probably just an old man to you. And I don’t mind being used, really, by you, if that’s what you really want. I just want to make you happy. And that’s… how I’ve decided to love you, really, Taka.”  
   
Takanori’s heart hammered loudly in his ears, unable to believe Akira’s words. Was that it? Was that how his lover had truly felt all these while? How had Takanori missed it? How had Takanori overlooked  _this_  possibility?  
   
“Akira…”  
   
Now Takanori was the one feeling apologetic. Akira had thought  _so_ much more of him, but here Takanori was, having assumed Akira thought nothing of him at all.  
   
“I thought you would run the moment I told you I wanted you to stay,” Akira continued quietly, his eyes falling away from his lover, hesitantly. “That I wanted you to stay for life. It’s too soon, I know, and I’ve never been one to decide on these things so quickly. But all I know is that you make me so happy, when you probably only agreed to start going out with me as a casual fling. I hadn’t expected it to get this far. You’re so…  _perfect_.  
   
You’re attractive, captivating, so confident, and yet underneath that tough exterior, you’re so… sensitive. You have a good heart. You care so much for the ones you love, and you want them to be happy. And I never thought you wanted to be tied down by anything. So I was going to wait for maybe half a year, or a year, at least, before I would finally admit how serious I am about you. I just… I didn’t know it would appear as though I didn’t care about including you into my future. Because I do, Takanori, I really do. I think about it a lot. Maybe even more than you.”  
   
Takanori’s lips slowly curled up into a small smile, his eyes now welling up with grateful tears. He’d finally heard all he needed to hear from his brunet lover, proving his claims earlier all wrong.  
   
He’d been worrying over nothing for so long.  
   
“You… you  _idiot_. Who waits for a year to say these kind of things?!”  
   
Akira chuckled quietly to himself, now that Takanori was appearing much more reassured.  
   
“I don’t want to lose you, Takanori,” Akira admitted, honestly. “I can’t. And I’ll do everything within my power to prevent that.”  
   
Takanori grinned widely, face glowing at what he’d just heard, quickly falling back to his usual flirty stance. “L… Lose me?  _You’re_ the one with a billion-dollar apartment and a convertible. I should be the one worried that I’d be losing you.”  
   
Akira laughed. “But you aren’t with me only for my money, aren’t you? You love me because I’m so much more.” Personality-wise was what he meant, but Takanori would be  _damned_ if he didn’t twist it into a sexual innuendo.  
   
Takanori feigned distaste, willing himself not to smile. “Fine. Maybe you  _also_ have something of worth that I’m worried about losing,” his eyes scanned down Akira’s crotch crudely, causing the older man to shift in his seat uncomfortably in embarrassment. “Hmph. You’re lucky you’re so well-endowed.”  
   
“Taka,  _please_ –” Akira’s face flamed up. “You’re so obnoxious sometimes.”  
   
Takanori giggled to himself, his eyes lighting up happily at Akira’s response. “But you still love me, right? You can’t resist  _this_.” He raised his head up high pridefully, a smug smile on his face.  
   
Akira let out a helpless sigh, immediately giving in to his lover. “Fortunately for you _and_ unfortunately for me, I can’t.”  
   
Then Takanori was curling up to himself in his seat again, gazing adoringly up to Akira. His voice lowered to a more bashful, nervous tone. “You really… You really mean it? You really see a future with me?”  
   
Akira managed a soft smile at how adorable and mousy Takanori was acting. “I really do, Taka. And I apologize if I haven’t been too obvious about it – I was just afraid you wouldn’t feel the same, and I never, ever want to make you uncomfortable by doing anything you don’t want to. But if you really want to be more involved in my life, I’m not going to stop you. You can come over to my office and stay for as long as you like, alright?”  
   
Takanori smiled so wide it almost hurt. “Then how would  _you_ concentrate with my perky ass around? I wouldn’t blame you if you wanted to keep me away solely because of this reason. I’m too good a distraction.”  
   
Akira laughed, grateful that Takanori was already back to his normal self. As Akira reached a finger over to stroke briefly at Takanori’s cheek, the smaller man winced, wondering what his lover was up to.  
   
“You scared me back there, when you started crying and threatening to leave,” Akira murmured in low tones, regret filling his eyes. “Don’t do that again, alright? You’re too beautiful to cry.”  
   
Takanori’s heart stilled at his words. The confusion on his face immediately dissolved, and he found himself gradually relaxing into Akira’s touch, almost nuzzling up against it. Akira’s gentle tone was soothing,  _incredibly_ soothing, and Takanori wanted so badly to hear this voice forever. To hear it caring for him, asking after him, sometimes even putting him into his place if needed be; Takanori wanted to have Akira take care of him forever.  
   
_God_ , Takanori was so in love with this man. And Takanori wanted so badly for Akira to know the extent of how much he’d already wedged his way into Takanori’s heart – permanently. And deservingly so.  
   
“I’m sorry I started the fight with you,” Takanori swallowed his pride down his throat and apologized, his hesitant eyes glimmering up to his lover. “And I’m sorry I’m always fighting with you. I never mean it when I do. I’m sorry I always make you mad. I’m sorry I’m always so unreasonable. I’m sorry I never really stop to hear you out and I’m sorry I always make decisions on my own without consulting you. I’m sorry if I’m too pushy at times. I’m sorry I assumed you didn’t love me at all.”  
   
Akira shook his head, refusing to allow Takanori to take any blame. It even hurt to hear his lover criticizing himself like this. “Taka, you don’t have to apologize. I’m not mad at you at all. If anything,  _I’m_ the one that has to–”  
   
“You’re always the one apologizing and giving in to me, when it has never been your fault.” Takanori fumed, then realized he was doing the exact thing he said he wouldn’t do. He let his irritance go, and gazed up to his lover with a tender look. “Will you let me take the blame, this time? I’m really sorry. I’m sorry I made you mad when I started comparing you to Kouyou, too. He’s a good man, but I’ve never liked him romantically as much as I do for you. And I know the both of you are different, and it has never been a fair comparison – I realize that now.  
   
But you’re perfect for me, and you fit my jagged edges just right, and I never want to lose you. I was just so scared… so scared you didn’t see me the same way I did for you. Because we can spend so many nights at your place, and we can go on so many romantic dates. But I needed to know if you planned for these things to last forever. Because it’s getting harder to imagine my life without you, and I can’t get dumped aside once you find a more suitable, more mature lover, I really can’t.”  
   
Akira broke into a chuckle, showing his teeth. “Taka… You know I will never blame you for anything. And I have to admit that it hurt a bit, to hear you talk about my best friend so fondly like that, but a part of me knew you never meant it that way. You were just confused, and worried, and I get that. Because you’re still young, and you get intimidated easily when you see people getting things that you aren’t. And I don’t fault you for that. Yuu and Kouyou are one thing; you and I both know how much they’ve been through to finally get to where they are now. But I’d always thought you enjoyed taking things slow, and I’d never imagined you would worry over losing me. Because I’ve always been the one worrying over losing you, Taka. And I didn’t ever want to lose you by saying any of that out loud. So I’m sorry for that, alright? I love you so much.”  
   
Takanori smiled shyly to himself, then leaned up and planted a soft kiss to Akira’s right cheek. Akira’s face beamed at the cute gesture, having never expected the sudden kiss.  
   
“I love you, too,” Takanori whispered, laying his head upon Akira’s shoulder. “Don’t hold back anymore on telling me these things. I want to know every single thing you think about me. I want to know  _everything_.”  
   
Akira smirked, just as he drove straight into the garage beneath his place. “Everything? Honey, I have to warn you, I’m not as gentlemanly as I seem.”  
   
“Do I look like I’d be scared by  _you_?” Takanori laughed, tracing a finger teasingly down the older man’s chest. “I think you’ve forgotten what kind of person your lover is.”  
   
“I sense a challenge,” Akira said, an eyebrow raised, parking his car into his usual spot. “Or are my ears deceiving me?”  
   
“Hey, I thought you had a meeting tomorrow?” Takanori innocently reminded, a finger jabbing at Akira’s chest. “Kouyou’s gonna be mad~”  
   
“Do you  _really_ think he’s going to just put Yuu to bed and then go to sleep?” Akira questioned, turning the engine off and getting out of his car. Takanori waited in his seat until Akira had made his way over and pulled the door open for him.  
   
“I think the  _real_  question you’re asking me is if I think you’re truly just going to put me to bed and then go to sleep.” Takanori asked, a sly smile on his face. He outstretched his arms, mewling to be carried up into Akira’s arms.  
   
“Well, so what do you think?” Akira laughed at his lover’s spoilt nature, picking Takanori up anyway.  
   
“…Like hell you  _are_.” Takanori grinned, circling his arms up around Akira’s neck.  
   
And like hell Akira was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reituki!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D:D:D ~~I’m always nervous when I write Reituki~~
> 
> I couldn’t stop listening to [Drive by Halsey](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oI-BsWbIg4) writing this. It sums up this chapter perfectly ;A;;
> 
> Also I feel like people will ask me where Kai is again in this chapter. I have news. KAI'S DEAD. ok, I’m kidding. he’ll come when he comes. XD
> 
> Comments are so loved as usual. Thank you <3


	44. Chapter 44

Life with Kouyou was absolute, domestic,  _bliss_. They’d spent at least half a year living with each other now, and Yuu had fallen into a routine habit of waking up early in the morning, at least an hour before Kouyou did, just to prepare lunch for Kouyou to bring to work. He’d prepare breakfast at the same time too, so Kouyou would have proper breakfast food to eat – not the plain bread and ham Kouyou used to be so accustomed to stuffing into his mouth in the morning before he got to work. Sometimes, and this happened more often than Yuu’d like, Kouyou tired Yuu out so much the night before that Yuu couldn’t even find the strength to wake in the morning. Kouyou would then annoy – I mean,  _pepper_  the raven with kisses until Yuu grumbled tiredly and whacked him off, letting out a pained moan before falling back to sleep. On those days Yuu would prepare lunch for Kouyou long after the older man had headed out to work, only delivering them personally to Kouyou’s office in the afternoon when he was free.  
  
Contrary to Yuu’s expectations of his lover, Kouyou was  _not_ a neat freak. No OCD, either. Kouyou had grown up independent, and he knew how to take care of himself,  _and_  he definitely had a habit of tidying everything away once he was done with them – but he wasn’t particular about Yuu not doing so, if the raven didn’t feel up to it. In his first two weeks of living with Kouyou, Yuu even deliberately tossed shirts to the floor sometimes to see if Kouyou would mind and reprimand him for such, but all his older lover did was pick Yuu’s shirts up and fold them neatly himself, putting them aside.  
  
 _Actually_ , come to think of it, Kouyou most probably had an OCD. But Yuu never did anything wrong in his eyes, and Kouyou most likely didn’t mind a shirt or two being tossed onto the floor as long as Yuu was staying by his side. Yuu stopped testing Kouyou’s limits after his couple of attempts to annoy the blond; he’d felt too bad when all Kouyou did was be nothing but patient and kind to him. Besides, every single time Yuu tried to get on Kouyou’s nerves, all Kouyou did was find  _even_  more excuses to pull Yuu to bed and have his way with the raven – roughly. And many times it involved smacking of the skin and turning Yuu’s buttocks bright red. And many times it ended up with Yuu begging in tears for Kouyou to stop, his cock hard and leaking against Kouyou’s lap.  
  
Not that Yuu didn’t _like_  it… Yuu always did.  
  
Kouyou was a busy man, though. Yuu did his part and tidied up Kouyou’s place as much as he could, knowing the older man had little time to care for the state of his penthouse. Kouyou still employed his usual domestic helper to come in at least twice a week to help with the cleaning of his place, despite Yuu’s objections, for he’d wanted to shoulder the household responsibilities on his own; but Kouyou was firm on his decision, saying he hadn’t asked for Yuu to move in with him only to make his lover clean his place.  _I asked you to move in so I could spend more time with you and see your face,_ Kouyou had explained to the raven, when the younger male had protested to him.  _Not be my little housemaid._  
  
Kouyou was always  _so_ incredibly thoughtful. Plus, now that Kouyou was staying with the raven, he had many more opportunities to cook for Yuu, and thus he equalized the amount of times they went out to fancy restaurants to eat, with the amount of times they stayed in and made home-cooked dinner. Yuu loved Kouyou’s cooking, since the older CEO really did cook well, but the raven tried to limit Kouyou to do it for them only once per week. Kouyou’s work was tiring enough, and he didn’t want to stress Kouyou out even more with having to prepare dinner. So Yuu took over more often than not, and had lots of time to immerse himself in cookbooks and practice whipping up new, creative dishes for Kouyou to try. Kouyou alone was providing for both of them after all, since Yuu was still studying, and Yuu wanted to repay Kouyou in some sort of way. Kouyou always claimed having Yuu by his side was good enough, but that didn’t help relinquish the guilt Yuu had for imposing onto his lover like this. Kouyou frequently brought back lavish gifts and flowers to surprise Yuu, too, and Yuu knew all of these had been bought with Kouyou’s hard-earned money.  
  
Yuu still spent majority of his time with Takanori at school. Kouyou and Akira rarely had time for them during the day, preferring to have dinner dates with them in the evening, and so Yuu and Takanori often had lunch and studied together. Occasionally, Yuu would return to Takanori’s apartment as well, just to while time away until Kouyou could pick him up. Sometimes they’d bake together, too, and surprise their lovers by bringing them pastries to eat.  
  
Yuu was thankful he had Takanori by his side, for he was almost in the same exact position Yuu was in, and they both understood each other’s thoughts and sentiments through and through about their lovers. It was nice to confide in someone who understood what it was like to date an older, upperclass man completely out of your league, and it was just nice to know Yuu wasn’t alone in all of this.  
  
Of course, conversational topics never stopped there with Takanori. Sometimes, they’d talk about the kinds of things they experimented with in the bedroom, and these talks always turned Yuu shy; but it was interesting to note the various tips Takanori would pick up from the magazines he read. Occasionally, Yuu would try a tip or two of Takanori’s when he was in the mood with Kouyou, and it’d surprise his older lover – but only in a good way. Kouyou’s ravenous appetite was  _insatiable._  
  
Despite living with each other now, though, there were still periods where Yuu barely saw Kouyou at all. Work picked up for the CEO in the months following after he’d arrived back from Europe, especially matters pertaining to the various businesses liaisions he’d settled whilst he had been there, and this meant Kouyou often stayed back in the office till late at night to clear his work. Akira would work alongside Kouyou, too, and sometimes Yuu and Takanori would decide to prepare home-cooked meals together and head over to the office, just to have dinner with their lovers. Other times, however, it was clear that Kouyou and Akira preferred to work without disturbance, and on those nights, if Takanori wasn’t available, Yuu would stay at home and have dinner alone whilst waiting for Kouyou to return.  
  
Those nights Yuu would often find himself falling asleep against the sofa, waiting for Kouyou to come back, and in the morning he’d wake up and find himself alone in bed, realizing that Kouyou had returned the night before to tuck Yuu in properly and catch a short wink or two himself before he headed back out to work again.  
  
Yuu didn’t mind nights like those, really. Being in a relationship didn’t mean that Yuu had to see Kouyou  _constantly_ , and he acknowledged the fact that he’d fallen in love with a man that was working in a rather high and demanding position. It only served to make Yuu adore Kouyou even futher, knowing that the older man was so devoted and serious about his work. Kouyou was the perfect CEO, and Yuu wanted him to succeed in every aspect in his career. So Yuu was fine not seeing Kouyou every now and then, since it made their time spent together even more precious, anyway.  
  
~  
  
Lately, though, Kouyou wasn’t coming back at all.  
  
Yuu was fine with a night or two not being able to see Kouyou – but a  _whole week in a row_? Yuu was beginning to grow lonely, especially in Kouyou’s wide, king-sized bed. Kouyou didn’t want Yuu to get a job whilst studying, preferring for Yuu to have more time to focus on his work and domestic life with Kouyou, but this also meant that Yuu had a whole load of free time during the day, and there was only so much housework you could do before you began to grow bored.  
  
Yuu even started contemplating getting some sort of part-time work behind Kouyou’s back – perhaps a waitering job at that nice café near his university – but decided against it, knowing that shifts could get irregular and he never knew when Kouyou would have free time to take him out spontaneously on a date. Besides, Kouyou would get upset if Yuu did it against his wishes; and by upset, Yuu meant  _upset_. He’d long known of his lover’s temperament, since it unleashed itself most commonly when he was at work,  _even_  if Kouyou never directed any of his anger towards Yuu. But he didn’t want to go against Kouyou’s wishes, either, and he only wanted to make Kouyou happy, so he dropped the idea.  
  
Even the amount of texts between them gradually started lessening. Kouyou assured Yuu that sometimes these things happened, that at some point in the year Kouyou’s work would start piling up and it’d seem never-ending. Yuu had argued that Kouyou had many people working for him, so  _why couldn’t he just delegate them parts of the work_  – but Kouyou had answered that he was the president of the company for a reason, and despite having people work underneath him, Kouyou  _still_ had to oversee all of their decisions, and make all the right calls. Not only did Kouyou have paperwork to clear and sign, he also had many obligatory lunches and meetings with clients to fulfill, and that meant his schedule was completely blocked up from head to toe.  
  
As annoyed as Yuu was at Kouyou’s work for taking his lover away from him, Yuu understood how important it was for Kouyou to prioritize and get his work done. Kouyou had his company’s brand to shoulder and elevate in the market, as well as his staff’s livelihoods to take care of. Kouyou had always been remarkably ambitious and Yuu didn’t want to take any of that away from him just because of his selfish needs to see his lover more.  
  
So Yuu endured through all of it. He opted to spend his meals and time with Takanori instead, who was facing the same predicament; and spent his days concentrating on schoolwork, whilst taking up random various hobbies. He’d managed to find an old guitar in the back of Kouyou’s storeroom, and that occupied him for a while as he attempted to self-learn how to play the guitar. Yuu hadn’t had time to confront Kouyou about the guitar just yet, but the raven guessed that the older man must have used to play when he was younger and had much more free time. Perhaps once Kouyou’s work cleared, Yuu could even get Kouyou to teach him himself. And those thoughts instantly cheered Yuu up and distracted him away from the loneliness of not having Kouyou next to him.  
  
Weeks flew by without Yuu noticing, and soon it’d been almost three weeks since Yuu actually spent a full day with the blond. They still went out for lunch or dinner occasionally, sure, and during the weekends Kouyou could also afford to spend at least half a day with the raven; but he almost always went back to the office by nighttime, determined to finish up his work.  _Even_  Akira made sure to free up his Sundays entirely to spend time with Takanori, whereas Kouyou, on the other hand, often had to go off to meet with some important client of his.  
  
And just when Yuu was starting to give up all hope of ever having proper time to spend with Kouyou again, one afternoon the blond texted Yuu to say that he’d be able to come home for dinner much more frequently from now on.  
  
And so Yuu was determined to make it all worth it.  
  
~  
  
 ** _Kouyou:_** _Hey, sweetheart. I think… I can come back for dinner tonight. I miss you so much. <3_  
  
 ** _Kouyou:_** _I know these past few weeks have been particularly unforgiving, and I’m so grateful that you’ve been so understanding of my plight. You really are the best. I’m really sorry. But I think I’ve cleared up most of my work now, and it’ll only slowly get better from now on. I love you, my little flower. See you tonight?_  
  
Yuu was so relieved to see his text messages that the raven hadn’t any heart at all to be mad at him for having been too busy for Yuu the past few weeks.  
  
 ** _Yuu:_** _of course i understand >< i love you too!!! really? you’ll come back for dinner? i’ll cook something nice for us for sure ^^_  
  
 ** _Kouyou:_** _Yes, really. I’m even thinking of taking the day off tomorrow. I’ll take you somewhere nice. I’ve been neglecting you so much. Forgive me, okay?_  
  
 ** _Yuu:_** _hmm… i’m still thinking about the ‘forgiving’ part. hmph. but i’d love to spend tomorrow with you <3 but are you sure? you’ve been so busy, i don’t want to distract you from work! i’m happy enough you’re coming home tonight_  
  
 ** _Kouyou:_** _It’s okay, honey. I think I will. I’ll hand over some of my work to Akira tomorrow. I think I deserve some sort of off-day too, right?_  
  
 ** _Yuu:_** _what kind of CEO tells himself he deserves an off-day?!!?!?! =_= now I’m really worried…_  
  
 ** _Kouyou:_** _Haha, I’m just kidding. I’ve finished the important aspects of my work, sweetheart, don’t worry, Akira can handle the rest. What’s a vice-president for, right? Plus, I really miss you. It’s been so long since I properly touched you…_  
  
Yuu’s cheeks immediately flamed up at the sight of the text, but he knew it was true. They hadn’t had much time to spend in the bedroom ever since Kouyou’s work picked up. They used to have sex every other night, but now Yuu could count on one hand how many times they’d made love in these three weeks alone – and the number was just plain sad to him.  
  
Feeling particularly daring, Yuu hurriedly typed a bold response back to his lover.  
  
 ** _Yuu:_** _i really miss you too… it’s been so long since i’ve had a proper orgasm, i swear. dildos just don’t cut it =_=_  
  
 ** _Kouyou:_** _…Oh, sweetheart. You did_ not _just plant mental images into my head of you pleasuring yourself in bed with the many sex toys I bought you._  
  
 ** _Yuu:_** _what am i to do at home when I’m needy if my lover’s thick hard cock isn’t around to fuck me xx_  
  
This time, Kouyou’s text message was slightly delayed. Yuu grew smug at the thought of Kouyou cursing under his breath at the sight of Yuu’s text message, knowing the blond could rarely resist it when Yuu dirty talked to him. Kouyou was bound to have a  _growing,_ physical, problem for sure.  
  
 ** _Kouyou:_** _Oh, I’ll_ show _you what that thick hard cock can do to you later tonight._  
  
 ** _Kouyou:_** _But not now, Jesus. It’s two in the afternoon in broad daylight and all I want to do now is jerk off to thoughts of you. Fuck._  
  
The raven giggled to himself. Kouyou was always so easy to tease.  
  
 ** _Yuu:_** _jerk off to those sexy videos of me that you have xx_  
  
 ** _Kouyou:_** _Yuu… :)_  
  
 _Oh,_ that smiley face was definitely threatening.  
  
 ** _Kouyou:_** _You’re so going to get it when I get home later. You little fox._  
  
 _…_ Only a fox? Ha, his lover was clearly underestimating him. Yuu was so  _much_  more.  
  
~  
  
There had been many changes done to Kouyou’s penthouse ever since Yuu moved in. The most notable change, though, was the one where Kouyou had decided the closet he owned wasn’t enough to store  _all_ of his clothes as well as Yuu’s, and therefore decided to convert one of his many unused rooms into a walk-in wardrobe  _specially_ for his raven-haired lover. Yuu had insisted he didn’t need one, since he didn’t have that large of a wardrobe anyway – Kouyou probably owned more clothes than he did – but Kouyou had countered back with a  _you seem to forget that I have multiple bags of lingerie that you own still left un-opened_ and that effectively shut Yuu right up. So Yuu let Kouyou do it.  
  
And it was magnificent.  
  
The room, that was. Yuu really didn’t have much clothing to store, though Kouyou tried valiantly to correct that by taking his younger lover out for shopping more often. Not that it made any difference, since the amount of clothes Yuu owned could never compare to the amount of lingerie he had. It was almost embarrassing for Yuu to realize that fact, when he started hanging up all his lingerie on one side of the room, filling the space up quickly and effortlessly; whilst the other side of the room remained almost half-empty, his own day-to-day clothes having occupied the most they could possibly take up, even with such little space to fill.

To add on, the lingerie buying never stopped.  _And_ Yuu wasn’t the only one that was buying them. Occasionally, Yuu would get a package addressed to this house, with his name on it, and he’d open the box up only to realize that Kouyou had bought even  _more_ lacey undergarments for him. He’d call Kouyou then, feeling a mix of infuriation and amusement, only to hear Kouyou tell him over the phone that he’d been feeling a little stressed out during work and so decided to surf the internet for cute lingerie to buy for his younger lover. It became such a recurring occurence that Yuu didn’t even question it anymore whenever suspicious-looking boxes arrived to the apartment, delivered from companies whose names were too out of the ordinary to be anything other than a sex shop.  
  
Yuu liked lingerie, of course. It was definitely one of Yuu’s kinks, and probably his  _favourite_  kink, and the raven-haired adored being fucked when he was dressed so wantonly to please his lover.  
  
Lately, however, he hadn’t any time to even have sex with Kouyou, much less dress up for him. What little lovemaking they did was done impulsively and unplanned, since they hadn’t much time to think it through at all; and tonight was finally a night where Yuu actually  _knew_ sex was guaranteed.  
  
So when Yuu stepped into his walk-in wardrobe this time round and flicked through the various expensive-looking lingerie he’d hung up, it didn’t take him long to decide on something nice to wear to surprise his lover tonight.  
  
Kouyou was going to be  _so_ pleased.  
  
~  
  
“Sir…”  
  
Yuu’s voice was sickeningly sweet as he called out for Kouyou, his slim frame leaning suggestively right up against the front door after he’d pulled it open. Kouyou was standing before him, holding his work briefcase in one hand; and the smile that he’d been wearing to greet Yuu promptly slid off his face, right after Kouyou’s brain properly registered the sight in front of him. The blond’s eyes were almost bulging out of their sockets now, his jaw wide open, his heart racing maniacally in his chest. Yuu had to stifle a delighted laugh back at how confused and – even slightly  _frightened_ – his older lover was acting. Kouyou most definitely was  _not_ expecting this generous display to welcome him home after a hard day’s work.  
  
“Welcome home, sir,” Yuu purred, feigning a look of shyness, lowering his head in a mid-bow. Kouyou was too stunned to speak, his wide eyes still greedily devouring the sight of his lover. Oh,  _fuck_ him. This was way too much for any man to take, especially when he hadn’t been getting  _any_ in the past few days for a while now.  
  
Yuu’s smoky dark eyes had been lined perfectly with immaculate eyeliner and done up expertly with black, mesmerizing eyeshadow. His cheeks had been highlighted with light pink blush, just a faint amount to taint his fair and smooth complexion; while his full lips had been tinted with a sweet cherry red. Yuu’s hair had grown long enough to be tied back into a long, high ponytail now, only leaving stray wisps of hair to frame his slender jaw, and  _god_ , Kouyou couldn’t deny how much he  _loved_ seeing Yuu with his hair tied up. It was a hairstyle that suited the raven so much, and Kouyou absolutely adored the control he could have over Yuu when he pulled at his hair during sex.  
  
The main point of it all, however, was that Yuu had dressed up as a maid today. A  _maid_. Yuu had never done that before. The white lacey headdress had been placed neatly over Yuu’s head, a stark contrast with his dark hair, and the little black and white frilly maid dress Yuu had chosen to wear tonight was so short, god, so  _fucking_ short against his thighs. Kouyou was certain that if Yuu turned around and showed off his butt to him, Kouyou would be able to see  _everything_. And now Kouyou was certain Yuu was wearing frilly underwear underneath, too – Yuu would make sure to keep everything in check.  
  
The maid dress that Yuu was donning didn’t have sleeves, too; they revealed Yuu’s bare, milky-white shoulders, showing off his slim built. And don’t even get Kouyou started on the long, white knee-high socks Yuu was wearing,  _fuck_. Yuu wore those socks so well, and his long legs looked so good in them. There was no way Kouyou was going to leave this night without a new knee-high sock fetish for Yuu.  _Congratulations, Yuu,_  Kouyou snorted as he thought to himself,  _you just added another kink to your lover’s already long list of_  ‘ _things I absolutely need to fuck Yuu in’._  
  
Kouyou thought he was even going to cry at some point.  
  
“Kou?” Yuu called out once more, slowly growing worried now that Kouyou hadn’t said anything so far in the past five minutes. His eyes were glassy and his body was unmoving. “Are you okay?”  
  
Kouyou took a second to regain his composure; he was Takashima Kouyou, for god’s sake. This was no way for a formidable CEO to act. The devilish smirk that Yuu was all-too-familiar with spread quickly upon Kouyou’s face, and his eyes immediately regained a lustful look.  
  
“I see,” Kouyou cocked an eyebrow up. “I seem to have a maid serving me tonight. What a surprise.”  
  
Yuu’s eyes turned away abashedly. He’d forgotten how hot Kouyou could get when he was acting cocky with him. “S… _Sir_ , please don’t tease me. I’m only here to cook and clean. L…Let me get your bag for you.”  
  
Kouyou’s eyes glimmered at the knowledge that Yuu was set on roleplaying tonight; the raven had made no move to break out of his role.  _Oh_ , this was turning him on way too much for his own good. He didn’t think he’d be able to last very long in this state.  
  
But while he still could, he was determined to tease Yuu in every way  _possible_  until the raven broke.  
  
“Get my bag, then,” Kouyou said, and just when Yuu thought his lover would hand over the briefcase to him readily, Kouyou raised it up high out of Yuu’s reach and threw it across the floor in the living room, sending the raven-haired right into shock.  
  
“What are you waiting for?  _Get it_ ,” Kouyou ordered, pointing to the ground, an amused look on his face, eyes looking straight into Yuu’s ones, as if daring his  _maid_ to challenge him.  
  
Yuu made a huge pout, but complied anyway, knowing his lover wasn’t going to make this easy for him. He turned his back to Kouyou and got onto his knees, crawling across the marble floor to get Kouyou’s briefcase. He heard his lover step into the apartment behind him and briefly lock the front door shut; before taking slow, menacing steps to Yuu from behind. Yuu was too afraid to turn his head to look, and so concentrated on reaching for Kouyou’s briefcase, pulling it into his grasp.  
  
Then Yuu felt Kouyou’s hand slip down underneath his skimpy dress, his rough palm cupping crudely around Yuu’s naked ass cheek, and the raven was instantly whining in response, determined to get away. But Kouyou’s strong arm was immediately snaking around Yuu’s waist and yanking him right back, pulling Yuu into his lap, Kouyou’s other hand still squeezing the raven’s plump ass cheek with his palm.  
  
“ _Nnn_ …” Yuu couldn’t contain his moan, feeling his lover’s hand massage and play around with his ass.  _Fuck_ , he’d missed this so much that even this simple action was enough to get his dick erect. His cock shifted uncomfortably underneath his dress, straining against the cotton.  
  
“You’re not even wearing any panties,” Kouyou murmured, his lips lowering right next to Yuu’s ear. He darted out a tongue to lick at Yuu’s earlobe, and the raven was instantly fluttering his eyes shut, his mouth hung open in a soft moan. “Why is that?”  
  
“I…” Yuu found it hard to think straight, when his petite body was being manhandled by his older lover and his naked ass was being fondled with so vulgarly by Kouyou’s coarse hands. Yuu was getting  _so_ hard.  
  
“I forgot, sir…”  
  
“Forgot?” Kouyou bellowed, raising his voice suddenly, catching Yuu off-guard. Yuu shivered at the sound of how angry he was, his body shaking with anticipation. He  _loved_ it when Kouyou displayed his dominance over him, _loved_ it when Kouyou put him into his place.  
  
“I don’t think you forgot, Yuu,” Kouyou growled, face in a disapproving scowl. “I think you did this on purpose, didn’t you? Do you like walking around the house without any underwear on? You just wanted me to notice, didn’t you? You wanted so badly for something to be shoved inside of you,” the older man’s finger trailed down the curve of Yuu’s ass cheek to meet the entrance of Yuu’s hole. He traced circles against it with his finger, smugly noting with satisfaction that Yuu kept pushing his ass back against Kouyou’s touch, unconsciously begging for Kouyou to slip his finger right in.  
  
“ _Oh,_ Yuu. What a naughty little servant you are. I thought you were employed only to cook and clean?” Kouyou accompanied this with a chuckle, turning Yuu’s earlier words right back onto him.  
  
Yuu hid his face away in shame. It wasn’t his fault his body was reacting  _so_ much to Kouyou’s touches after the older man had tamed him to do so after months of being fucked by him.  
  
 _Fine,_ two could play at this game, if Kouyou so wished.  
  
“I’m sorry, sir,” Yuu mumbled out, hugging Kouyou’s briefcase to his chest, attempting to stand on his weak knees. “I have to do my duties now. I still have some sweeping and mopping to do. So let me just–  _Ah!_ ” Yuu was almost immediately pulled right back down into Kouyou’s lap, the older man eyeing him with a stern look.  
  
“Did I say you could get up?” Kouyou barked, a hand quickly moving up to pull ruthlessly at Yuu’s ponytail. Yuu winced at the harsh grip, and he slowly shook his head, his eyes defiantly looking up to his blond lover.  
  
“No, sir.” He still remained respectful, though. Yuu knew his role clearly in this little role-play game, he knew he had to be as submissive as possible.  
  
“Then why did you think you could excuse yourself?” Kouyou hissed. His hand left Yuu’s hair and slipped right back down beneath Yuu’s dress, his thick finger locating Yuu’s hole once more. To his surprise, as he teasingly fingered the tip, he realized Yuu’s entrance had been lubricated.  
  
“You’re wet,” Kouyou noted in surprise. “You prepared yourself before I returned?”  
  
Yuu’s big eyes blinked up innocently to Kouyou, which only provoked the blond even further. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, sir… Wait–  _Unn_ …  _Un_ , please,  _ah,_   _no_ –”  
  
Yuu let out a gasp as Kouyou’s finger rubbed vigorously against his puckered hole, teasing him until Yuu was whimpering to be entered. The older man only relented seconds later when Yuu hid his face in Kouyou’s chest and cried out Kouyou’s name shamelessly, leading Kouyou to decide to stop teasing Yuu any further, and to finally push a thick fingertip up into the raven.  
  
“Fuck…!” The raven muffled his pleasured scream as Kouyou worked Yuu open slowly, listening to the sounds Yuu made and taking his cues for how to advance from them, furiously sliding his finger slickly in and out of his younger lover.  
  
“ _Nnnn_ … Sir…  _Sir_ , please, ah… _ah,_   _I can’t take it if you_ –!” Yuu cried out, feeling Kouyou slip a second and third finger in quickly. Kouyou made sure to rub Yuu’s prostate expertly as he went along, having had much experience from the various times they’d fucked before to know which spots brought Yuu pleasure and which didn’t.  
  
“What a filthy little whore,” Kouyou whispered, his breath hot against Yuu’s ear. “I chose my servant well.”  
  
Yuu lay his head back against Kouyou’s chest helplessly; sweat trickling down the side of his face as Kouyou spread his thick digits inside of him. The raven-haired could do nothing but part his lips and moan out loudly in continuous fashion as Kouyou rode him deeply with his fingers. It’d been so long since Yuu had been touched like this, that every part of him had turned extremely sensitive, and he knew it wouldn’t take long for him to cum.  
  
And as Yuu’s hands reached down the front of his dress to grab hold of his cock, he felt himself coming so close,  _god_ , so close, and just a few seconds longer and he would be able to c–  
  
“I’m hungry,” was all Kouyou said as he pulled his fingers right out, bringing an instant halt to the mindblowing pleasure Yuu was experiencing all these while.  
  
Yuu could barely believe Kouyou was doing this to him.  
  
“W…What?” Yuu choked out, his eyes turning glossy from the tears that had started gathering around them.  
  
“I’m hungry,” Kouyou repeated, and then he was slowly pushing Yuu off him and getting up himself, dusting his hands against his pants as he did so. Yuu lay limp against the floor, his hard cock still leaking against the fabric of his dress, his ass hole having been worked open and long ready for penetration.  
  
“B…But,” Yuu hastily protested, getting onto his knees, gazing up to Kouyou almost beggingly, pleading for the older man to finish off what he’d started. “S…Sir, I… I need to cum.”  
  
“And I’m hungry,” Kouyou responded simply, eyes daring Yuu to defy his command. “Is dinner ready?”  
  
Yuu looked to him in horror, choking back a sob at the sheer realization that Kouyou wasn’t going to let him cum anytime soon.  _Kouyou was… denying him release?_ The older man was having  _way_ too much fun with the power Yuu granted him this evening.  
  
“Dinner’s ready,” Yuu uttered quietly, defeated. His erection was still so painful under his dress,  _fuck_.  
  
“Then get up and serve me,” Kouyou demanded impatiently, as if he was stating the obvious.  
  
Yuu scowled up to him obstinately, reluctantly getting up on his knees.  
  
“Fine,” Yuu huffed, neatening the hems of his dress and adjusting the headdress against his hair. The raven wiped embarrassedly at his wet eyes, taking care not to smear his smoky eye make-up that he’d so meticulously done. Just for Kouyou.  
  
Like Yuu said earlier, if Kouyou wanted to play,  _two_ could play at this game.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> >:) So I decided on a maid costume.
> 
> Thanks [Sol](http://aoi-superstar.tumblr.com) for your amazing maid!Aoi manip. I'm not even going to deny it played a part inspiring this. (and thank you setenay629 for suggesting maid Aoi in the first place)


	45. Chapter 45

Out of spite, Yuu spent an awfully long time serving out Kouyou’s dinner onto a plate for him, and he made a grand show out of it, too. Yuu made sure Kouyou had an  _amazing_  view of what Yuu was doing at the stove from where the blond was seated, and the raven deliberately dropped a few slices of food every now and then to the floor so Yuu had no choice but to bend over in front of Kouyou, showing his naked ass right off to his lover. Yuu would only be satisfied and get up from each bend once he heard Kouyou hitch his breath, or shift his body uncomfortably in his chair, at the sight.  
   
Yuu wanted to arouse Kouyou as much as Kouyou had teased him before, and Yuu knew it wouldn’t take much for Yuu to do so. Kouyou always gave in so easily to Yuu’s advances, and tonight wasn’t going to be any exception. Yuu wouldn’t let it.  
   
“Dinner is served,” Yuu spat, once he was finally done, striding over and dumping a plate resentfully right down onto the dining table before Kouyou. Kouyou sat in his seat, his gaze unamused, his lips frowning as he observed the indignant look on Yuu’s face. Not pleased with the kind of attitude his younger lover was showing him, Kouyou reached out a hand to grip at Yuu’s slender jaw, forcing the raven-haired to look up into his eyes.  
   
“Someone’s upset,” Kouyou remarked, raising his eyebrows at Yuu’s vexed behavior.  
   
Yuu scoffed loudly at Kouyou’s deduction.  _Of course_ Yuu was upset, he had expected to get laid with this sexy outfit, and be fucked right up against the front door immediately after Kouyou had taken one simple look at him –  _not_ go through this dragged out torturous form of teasing administered first-hand by his lover.  
   
“Sir, you must be mistaken,” Yuu forced up a tight smile to Kouyou. “I would never dare be upset at you.”  
   
“But you are,” Kouyou laughed, releasing his grip on Yuu’s jaw, leaning back against his chair. He scrutinized Yuu from top to bottom, his gaze lecherously taking in how alluring Yuu looked in his maid get-up. “Such a pretty princess. I wonder how such an attractive person came to work as a maid.”  
   
Yuu folded his arms and turned his head away, refusing to look at Kouyou in the eye. Despite being dressed like a maid, Yuu still had  _some_ dignity he’d like to preserve to himself.  
   
“Well, maybe I didn’t  _choose_ to work here. Maybe you kidnapped me. I’d have so many suitors, after all. Maybe you’re a crazy, possessive lunatic.”  
   
“Oh?” Kouyou asked, his lips widening up into a curious smile. “I see. That’s the kind of storyline we’re working with. You want me to be rougher with you, Yuu?”  
   
“You wouldn’t dare,” Yuu warned, only to yelp a second later, when Kouyou’s arms pulled Yuu down and brought his body right back into Kouyou’s lap, forcing the raven-haired to curl up into Kouyou’s embrace.  _Oh_ , Kouyou had indeed grown hard over Yuu’s tantalizing display from before; Yuu could feel the thick bulge in Kouyou’s work pants beneath the raven’s ass. It was impossible to miss through the thin material of Yuu’s maid dress.  
   
“You–”  
   
“Shh,” Kouyou brought a finger to Yuu’s lips, hushing his raven lover from opposing him. “You’re not allowed to deny me. I’m your master, remember?”  
   
“You’re a mean one,” Yuu sulked in reply, evoking a chuckle from Kouyou immediately. Kouyou pressed his lips to the side of Yuu’s hair, kissing him softly.  
   
“Maybe I brought you back to my house because I fell in love with you at first sight,” Kouyou whispered against Yuu’s hair, running his hands underneath Yuu’s dress and over the raven’s calves and thighs, glorying in the feel of all that soft, supple skin. “Maybe because I can’t stand seeing you with other men anymore. Maybe I only want you to be mine, only and forever,” Kouyou’s hands had reached Yuu’s flat stomach, now, his fingers playing with Yuu’s silver navel piercing. “Maybe you’re the prettiest thing I’ve ever lay my eyes upon. Maybe I just want to give you everything I have and make you so,  _so_ happy.” His hands had wandered up to Yuu’s nipples at this point, and his thumb and his index finger were pinching at the raven’s firm, sensitive nubs, rubbing at them teasingly in his hold.  
   
“ _Oh_ … It feels good,” Yuu fell victim to Kouyou’s touches once more, his cock throbbing uncontrollably in between his thighs. “K…Kou…”  
   
“Mmm, that’s  _Sir_  or  _Master_ for you,” Kouyou corrected, planting chaste kisses down all over Yuu’s face. Compared to Kouyou’s harsh treatment from before, Yuu was in  _heaven_ now that Kouyou was properly kissing him and administering to him pleasurable foreplay. Yuu moaned softly against Kouyou’s shoulder, allowing the older man to do as he so pleased with Yuu’s body in his grasp.  
   
Yuu was in so much bliss, with his eyes partially closed, that he hadn’t even noticed what the blond had been doing. At this point in time, Kouyou’s other hand had reached for the plate on the table and placed it aside onto the chair next to him; and after making sure the tabletop was fully cleared, Kouyou brought his hands down to Yuu’s waist and hoisted him up onto the dining table, leaning Yuu right down onto his back against the glass surface.  
   
“Nn?” Yuu’s eyes jolted open at the new arrangement, feeling up the table underneath him. “It’s cold…”  
   
“I know it is, honey,” Kouyou cooed, eager hands hiking up Yuu’s short dress in folds to his hips, leaving Yuu’s lower half of his body naked to plain sight. The older man licked his lips at the lewd display of Yuu’s fully erect cock, and his mere reaction made Yuu blush, the raven’s fingers almost reaching over to tug his dress back down and protect his modesty.  
   
“Don’t stare like that,” Yuu mumbled awkwardly, avoiding eye contact with the blond. “It’s embarrassing.”  
   
“But you’re so pretty,” Kouyou insisted, and then he was kneeling right down to the ground, his head level with the table, surprising Yuu instantly with his action.  
   
“Wha–?” Yuu questioned, having expected the blond to strip himself and begin fucking him already. His thoughts were quickly drowned out, though, when Kouyou’s long fingers closed around Yuu’s cock and languidly began to stroke it. Yuu couldn’t help but thrust his hip to get more friction, moaning as he did so, shutting his eyes close to enjoy the sensation. Kouyou’s hands always felt  _so_ good.  
   
But the surprise didn’t end there. The next thing he knew, he felt a pleasant – albeit unfamiliar – warmth envelop around his cock, and Yuu’s eyes snapped wide open. Straining his head down to take a look, Yuu witnessed Kouyou taking Yuu’s cock into his mouth, the blond’s eyes hazily lidded in pleasure as he did so. It wasn’t as if it was the first time Kouyou was sucking him off – they’d been dating for more than half a year after all, and had plenty of time to experiment different things in the bedroom – but admittedly the older man rarely got on his knees to pleasure Yuu with his mouth. Yuu barely minded it; he knew Kouyou favoured control in the bedroom, and positions that challenged his dominance turned him right off. Being sucked off wasn’t something Yuu particularly liked, anyway, since the raven-haired much preferred to be the one on his knees instead and administering his older lover pleasure; plus Kouyou always made him cum so much harder with many other means.  
   
But that didn’t mean Yuu didn’t appreciate Kouyou’s efforts whenever he let his guard down and got on his knees for Yuu. It was a different kind of lewd, knowing that Kouyou – who was so used to being in power – was submitting to Yuu like this, actively pleasuring him with his mouth. Kouyou did this to show that he loved Yuu, that he trusted him; and the abundance of love Yuu felt whenever Kouyou did this, combined with the crazy amount of lust that filled Yuu upon watching Kouyou’s intoxicated expressions as he deep-throated Yuu’s cock, was enough to help Yuu quickly approach his release, for he could barely  _stand_ how hot Kouyou was when he did this for him.  
   
“ _Ah_ … ah,  _Daddy_ , unn… you’re so good to me…” Yuu moaned, fingers scratching at the glass surface in vain. Thank god Kouyou had a tendency to buy furniture expensive enough to be scratchproof, though Yuu wondered how he was ever going to eat at this dining table again without remembering being sucked off against it. “Master… Master… Master…”  
   
“Mmm,” Kouyou’s groan was muzzled, swallowing Yuu’s length as much as he could. He then flattened his tongue against the underside, licking a slow stripe up to the head before laying wet, open-mouthed kisses along its whole length, worshipping Yuu rightfully. Yuu gasped out loud, his hands reaching down automatically to grip at Kouyou’s blond hair, his long, lean legs hooked over Kouyou’s shoulders, crossing right behind Kouyou’s head, locking it in a grip.  
   
“Unn… your mouth… So good,  _fuck_ …” Yuu bucked his hips up, begging for Kouyou to take in more. The older man complied, and Yuu soon found himself thrusting slowly into the warm cavern, shuddering every time he felt the head of his cock hit the back of Kouyou’s throat. If Kouyou had a gag reflex, he certainly didn’t let it show; or perhaps he’d only wanted to make sure his babydoll was pleasured, and didn’t bother vocalizing any complaints.  
   
When Yuu’s fingers tightened further in Kouyou’s blond locks, though, the blond let a small pained gasp escape; and Yuu instantly loosened his grip in fear of having hurt his older lover, though Kouyou just shook his head and increased the speed of his thrusts, slurping away obscenely at Yuu’s cock. This time, he also brought up a finger to Yuu’s entrance, wedging it teasingly into Yuu’s hole, before breaching it carefully in, only moving his finger deeper when there was only pleasure visible in the lines of Yuu’s face. Then Kouyou was furiously thrusting his finger in and out of Yuu’s tight heat as he fucked his mouth upon Yuu’s cock, bringing the raven-haired overwhelming pleasure.  
   
“ _Too fast!_  Please… Unn…  _Daddy_! I’ll cum–” Yuu threw his head back against the glass tabletop, his face scrunched up permanently in ecstacy. Tears were gathering around his lashes and his cheeks had swelled red, his self-restraint snapping too quickly like a taut string.  
   
“ _Fuck fuck fuck fuck_ , Kouyou!  _Please_! So fast, I can’t–” Yuu’s legs squeezed around Kouyou’s neck, the cotton of his white knee-high socks brushing up against Kouyou’s messy blond hair. Kouyou still wasn’t relenting, thrusting his finger in even more urgently than before, whilst fucking Yuu’s cock with every inch of his mouth, growing even more hurried and loud, punctuating every lick and slurp that accompanied Yuu’s every weak moan and cry.  
   
Heat coiling low in Yuu’s stomach, Yuu only needed to take one look down into Kouyou’s predatory eyes to see the words Kouyou couldn’t speak –  _cum for me_ – before he actually did so. God, Yuu couldn’t fathom how  _even_ when Kouyou was on his knees for him, the older man could still look so demanding, so vicious, and able to control Yuu with just  _one_  simple look. Kouyou always called the shots in the bedroom, and he wanted to make sure Yuu knew; Yuu, who had long accepted his role as the passive submissive.  
   
“Daddddyyyy,” Yuu sobbed out, his voice strained, his eyes bleary with tears, his legs turning weak. He let out a strangled moan as he shuddered, cumming right down Kouyou’s throat. The older man swallowed every drop of it, his mouth only releasing Yuu’s cock when he was done, his hands reaching up to his lips to wipe the excess remains off.  
   
Yuu lay on the table in his post-orgasm state, panting softly to himself, his eyes fluttering up and down, his mind drifting in and out of consciousness. It’d been so long since he’d cum like that, so long since Kouyou had touched him like this, and  _fuck_ , did it feel good. Yuu watched through his fuzzy vision as Kouyou stood up before him, shakily, slowly regaining his balance, before his hands drifted down to the front of his pants, unzipping it to release his raging erection that had been left neglected all these while.  
   
Yuu felt like a lightweight when Kouyou pulled at Yuu’s thighs and rolled him over roughly, exposing his firm, naked butt to cold air. Then Kouyou’s one hand was spreading Yuu’s ass cheeks apart, whilst he held his engorged member in his other hand and guided it right up against Yuu’s taut hole.  
   
“So fucking sexy,” Kouyou groaned, marveling at the sight of Yuu’s milky ass open and waiting for Kouyou. Yuu looked so beautiful, with faint flush on his face, slight sheen of sweat over his skin, his maid dress falling further down his chest and exposing much more skin than just his slender shoulders. Yuu’s hair was also still in a ponytail, though it’d loosened so much by now. Yuu’s weak body lay ready underneath of Kouyou, defenceless and completely under Kouyou’s control.  
   
“I’m only like this for my Daddy,” Yuu whimpered with what little strength he had left, squirming his ass enticingly right underneath Kouyou’s gaze. And that did  _it_  for Kouyou; the older man couldn’t wait any longer. Kouyou lined his cock up against the curve of Yuu’s ass, then thrusted slowly inside of him, eliciting a pained gasp immediately from his lover.  
   
“Did it hurt?” Kouyou immediately asked, furrowing his brows in concern.  
   
“It’s just been so long since I felt your big cock inside me,” Yuu whined, though he was shaking his head. “I’ll be okay. Just fuck me.”  
   
Kouyou still waited for a moment or two for Yuu to adjust, though, before sinking his cock in further, bit by bit until he was drawing soft moans from the raven-haired. Yuu felt so tight, much tighter than Yuu had been in ages, and Kouyou wondered if it was because they hadn’t been fucking as much as before; or perhaps Yuu had always been this tight and Kouyou had simply forgotten the sensation after a short while of abstinence. After his balls finally connected with Yuu’s ass, they panted together for a moment, breathing each other in.  
   
Then Kouyou pulled back as slowly as he had pushed in until only the head of his cock was inside, still afraid to hurt his lover. But Yuu’s hips writhed impatiently and he was pushing back insistently against his lover, urging Kouyou to go on.  
   
“Daddyyy,” Yuu wailed, wriggling his butt up to him frustratedly. “Fuck meeee.”  
   
Since his babydoll princess was whining so cutely to him, Kouyou  _couldn’t_ possibly say no. In fact, it almost drove the older man  _crazy_.  
   
Kouyou grabbed hold of Yuu’s hips, hard enough to bruise and not caring, and began to fuck Yuu the way he’d been longing to when he first saw Yuu clothed in his maid costume – mindlessly and desperately. Yuu’s inner walls twitched around his girth, doubling the pleasure insanely, and Kouyou didn’t even bother muffling his grunts as he drove in and out of his younger lover, hungry for his own release.  
   
“Fuck… Fuck, Yuu,  _fuck_ ,” was the only thing Kouyou could say, as he drowned further in the pleasure Yuu was bringing him. His nails dug into Yuu’s pale skin, the wetness around his cock felt obscene, and the squelch of Yuu’s lubricated asshole drove him on and fuelled the fire of his heat.  
   
“Oh…  _Oh_ … Kou… So big,  _ah…_ ” Yuu sighed out, feeling the glass dining table rock uncertainly underneath him with every deep thrust Kouyou was giving him from behind. Kouyou just kept pushing harder, faster, almost like an animal uncontrollable in heat. “Use me,  _Daddy_ … That’s it,  _mmm_ … I’m just a filthy maid for you to fuck all day any time you please…”  
   
“ _Fuck_ , Yuu, don’t say things like that,” Kouyou hissed, livid, a hand giving a harsh slap to the surface of Yuu’s ass, watching it wobble and gradually turn red with a clear handprint. “What a slut. I bet the only reason I employed you was because I knew your dirty mouth and juicy ass would want my thick hard cock. That’s all you’re good for, isn’t it? To be fucked like a whore, all day long.”  
   
“ _Nnn_ … Yes, Daddy…” Yuu moaned out in delight, humping his ass excitedly back against Kouyou’s cock, whimpering with relief and shouting for more. “ _Oh…_ so good, so good,  _unn…_ Right there,  _yes_ , Daddy,  _oh_ …!”  
   
Kouyou had climbed up the table by now, his body pressed flush right against Yuu’s. Lifting Yuu’s hips just a slight bit, the new angle took Kouyou impossibly deeper inside of Yuu, and the pressure against his cock as he rocked in and out of Yuu’s body was almost reducing the raven-haired to screams.  
   
“Babydoll feels so good all tight around Daddy’s cock like this,  _fuck_ ,” Kouyou groaned, panting deliriously, his arms wrapping around Yuu’s body, pressing the raven tightly against his chest, as if preventing the raven-haired from running away. Sweat was soaking through Kouyou’s buttoned-up shirt by now, sticking to Yuu’s own bare shoulders. Yuu could scarcely move in this position, with Kouyou’s heavy weight on his back, and Kouyou’s tight grip fastened around him; so all Yuu could do was contain his sobs and chant out Kouyou’s name in moans, and be rode upon by Kouyou’s fervent cock.  
   
“Mine, you’re  _mine_ ,” Kouyou voiced out, possessively, his teeth sinking right down into the nape of Yuu’s neck. Yuu hardly noticed the pain of being marked, his eyes having long shut as he was being slowly engulfed by the overwhelming pleasure. “Yuu, my sweet babydoll… You’re mine for eternity.”  
   
Yuu came for the second time, this time together with Kouyou, whose groans were muffled as he bit down against Yuu’s neck and decorated bites all the way down his shoulders, over again and again. Yuu was in tears by the time Kouyou had emptied himself out inside of Yuu, his hot cum trapped inside of Yuu’s ass. Kouyou’s arms around Yuu still remained firm, unwilling to release his younger lover. Yuu slumped down against his chest, still shaking from the intensity of his orgasm.  
   
“So perfect,” Kouyou murmured, kissing Yuu gently against the head, squeezing Yuu in his grasp. “So, so perfect.”  
   
“Unn,” Yuu made a small whine, fingers clutching at Kouyou’s sweat-soaked shirt. They were both so filthy by now, but Yuu felt the dirtiness only made Kouyou more alluring to him. Kouyou was still dressed in his work clothes, and Yuu  _loved_ seeing the demanding CEO side of Kouyou turn rabid because of Yuu. Kouyou always looked so authoritative, so commanding, dressed so neatly in a suit, and Yuu adored it when Kouyou exerted that control over him.  
   
“I apologize if I was a little harsh with you earlier,” Kouyou kissed Yuu once more, as he panted and caught his breath. “With the bag throwing and all. I just wanted to tease you. You surprised me tonight. You’re so cute when you’re dressed up like this – I couldn’t resist.”  
   
Yuu couldn’t even muster the energy to sound mad. “You’d make such a mean employer. I never want to work for you.”  
   
“Nnn, don’t be like that, babydoll,” Kouyou sighed, his hands caressing down the side of Yuu’s arms. “Plus, I only play with you because I know you know I don’t mean it. I love you too much to  _actually_  mistreat you. I’m so happy you dressed up for me today. I especially love the white knee-high socks. You look so good in them.”  
   
Yuu hid his shy smile to himself. “I knew a pervert like you would like them. I don’t expect any less from you.” It’d been one of the deciding factors for Yuu to settle on choosing this maid costume to wear tonight, too.  
   
“You know me the best,” Kouyou laughed, leaning his head down to nuzzle his nose affectionately against Yuu’s one. “But you could have worn anything tonight and I’d still be happy. I’m so happy to be spending quality time with you.”  
   
Yuu’s eyes looked up dejectedly to him, only now remembering how long it’d been since they had spent time together like this.  
   
“I haven’t been seeing you much, at all.”  
   
It’d been so long, and he’d missed Kouyou so much. Even simply being held like this, even simply talking to each other. Kouyou rarely found time for him anymore.  
   
Kouyou’s heart softened at the upset frown on Yuu’s face. “I know, honey, I know. It’s my fault. I’m so sorry for that, Yuu. I really am. I just can’t control work, and how busy it can get sometimes. I never really had a flexible schedule, as expected of my jobscope, but trust me; I always am trying to find time for you. But it’s all over now, all right? I’ll have more time to bring you out on dates. I’m really sorry for neglecting you over the past few weeks.”  
   
Yuu knew it wasn’t Kouyou’s fault, though. Yuu had always been understanding of Kouyou’s situation, and he knew the man wasn’t actively ignoring him on purpose. Kouyou was older, and he had his work duties, and his own responsibilities. Yuu couldn’t expect so much out of his immensely capable lover.  
   
“It’s okay,” Yuu comforted, weakly smiling up to Kouyou. “If you say it’ll be fine now, then it’s okay. I understand. You have your own commitments. I just want to sleep with you next to me in bed again. I want to be able to have dinner with you and watch movies with you. Or just having you hold me like this. I just want you by my side. It gets really lonely at night, and I can’t always spend the night at Takanori’s.”  
   
“I wouldn’t like you spending the night at another man’s place, either,” Kouyou teased, though he knew he needn’t ever worry about Yuu’s friendship with Takanori. “I promise I’ll make time to come home every night now, okay? I mean it.”  
   
“That’s good to hear,” Yuu smiled, snuggling his head up against Kouyou’s neck. “Then I promise I’ll wear more lingerie for you. I’ll even let you pick the next costume.”  
   
Kouyou’s eyes immediately gleamed, elated with such an idea. “Ah, so this is what bliss is like. I leave you for a couple weeks and you grow lonely enough to give in completely to me…”  
   
“Oi,” Yuu delivered a small punch to Kouyou’s chest. “You’re not allowed to leave me alone so often, okay?! I understand if it’s for work, but…”  
   
“I was just teasing. I won’t leave you alone without good reason, I love you too much,” Kouyou chuckled, burying his nose into Yuu’s strawberry-scented hair. “Mmm… You smell so good. I don’t think I’m ready for this night to end just yet.”  
   
“Well…” Yuu’s head turned to the side shyly. “It’s not like I’m tired yet, or anything…” He played thoughtlessly with the fabric of his dress, pretending not to notice Kouyou’s hungry stare.  
   
“ _Oh_ , babydoll… Now you’re going to get it.” Kouyou squeezed Yuu in his hold, smothering kisses all over his hair.  
   
“Kouyou, I say this because I care for the state of your dining table – we’re going to have to take this to the bedroom before it breaks.  _And_ I’m not into bloodplay. So I would like not to get cut by glass shards, thank you very much.”  
   
“Fine, you make a fair point.”  
   
“One day you’re going to get us seriously killed because of your pervertic tendencies, and trust me, Takanori will not cease to make horrible sexual innuendos when he’s there to witness our burial.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed these two chapters! ( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ
> 
> There's still more to come. Comments are loved as usual, thank you <3


	46. Chapter 46

It must have been seven in the morning when the doorbell to Kouyou’s apartment rang, waking both the raven and the blond up. Yuu was groaning at the incessant ringing of the doorbell, cursing whoever was responsible for it, having only gone to sleep four hours earlier. They rarely got visitors, since Kouyou’s place had extremely high security; and most of the time, people who wanted to pass through the grounds had to alert the security guards situated downstairs first, who would in turn alert Kouyou over his intercom.  
   
Only a select few could bypass permission grounds to get up to Kouyou’s penthouse directly themselves, and Akira was one of them. Since Akira had come up several times before, Yuu wondered if Akira had headed over this morning to inform or handover something work-related to Kouyou. Well, whatever it was, Akira could suck it. Yuu rolled over in bed, pulling the covers up over himself, evidently grouchy and annoyed that they’d been woken up.  
   
“I’ll get the door,” Kouyou mumbled, stifling a yawn himself, having also assumed he would be able to sleep through the morning, since he’d informed Akira the day before that he would be taking the day off. Yuu and Kouyou had made plans for a long-awaited date today, though they’d agreed last night they would still take the opportunity to sleep in till noon, for it’d been awhile since Kouyou had properly gotten some rest.  
   
“If it’s Akira, give him the middle finger for me,” Yuu grumbled. Kouyou chuckled to himself at Yuu’s words and got out of bed, sleepily putting some pants on. Akira had seen worse during their times together in college, so Kouyou didn’t bother dressing himself up too fancy for his best friend.  
   
Kouyou soon left the room, and despite yelling a loud  _Coming!_ at the door, the ringing still didn’t stop. Sighing, Kouyou readied himself for Akira’s teasing, knowing the other man wouldn’t be able to resist saying a thing or two to Kouyou’s face about Kouyou and Yuu having spent the night together before.  
   
Yuu hadn’t realized he’d fallen asleep for a good solid five minutes after that until he patted Kouyou’s side of the bed and found it absent of Kouyou’s warmth. Finding it strange and wondering if Kouyou had left the house without informing him, Yuu strained his ears to pick up on sounds in the direction of the front door, and was only relieved when he heard Kouyou’s familiar voice speaking in hushed whispers – coupled with two other foreign-sounding voices.  
   
Yuu’s eyes flitted wide open at the knowledge that their visitor hadn’t been Akira. Now Yuu was  _truly_ curious; there weren’t that many people that Kouyou gave direct access to when it came to his penthouse. His heart frantically beating in his chest, Yuu wrapped the thick white duvets around his delicate frame and hobbled his way off the bed, tipping on his toes and making his way out of the bedroom quietly, curious to know what was taking Kouyou so long to return to bed.  
   
“Kou?” Yuu called out, peering his head innocently out from behind the wall, his eyes coming into sight with his older lover standing right in front of an open door. “What’s taking you so long?”  
   
Kouyou’s eyes seemingly froze now that he was conscious Yuu was awake,  _knowing_ that Yuu couldn’t be clothed in anything more than just a bunch of blankets.  
   
“Um, Yuu sweetheart,” Kouyou tried desperately not to let his anxiousness show, still blocking the door from view. “Go back to sleep, alright? I’ll join you in awhile.”  
   
“But I…” Yuu frowned, realizing the blond was adamantly keeping something from him. “I can’t sleep without you. Who’s at the door?”  
   
“Sweetheart–” Kouyou’s face features twisted in exasperation, gesturing for Yuu to return to his room. “Please go back to our room for awhile. I’ll explain later.”  
   
“Kouyou, who are you talking to?” An older woman’s voice could be heard from beyond the door, sending Yuu straight into shock. Yuu’s eyes widened at the sound of her voice, a clear guess already forming in his head. Kouyou cursed silently under his breath as the older woman pushed Kouyou aside to take a look into the apartment, her eyes instantly brightening up at the sight of Yuu standing by the corridor, the poor raven-haired looking perfectly like a deer caught in the headlights.  
   
Yuu didn’t need Kouyou to tell him who the woman was; Yuu already knew. The resemblance between the blond and her was uncanny.  
   
“ _Oh_ , dear… I’d almost forgotten your boyfriend was staying with you, honey,” The woman cackled, almost approvingly, her eyes fixated on Yuu’s barely clad frame. “Oh, he’s a pretty one. Yuu, isn’t it? That’s what you called him in the last email you sent us.”  
   
“Mother,  _please_ –” Kouyou pleaded, eyes turning to Yuu to beg him to return to his room. “We were sleeping. You totally caught us off-guard. You should have at least called, or something.”  
   
“That’s what I told your mother, but she wouldn’t listen,” a deep older male voice answered, stepping through the door as well, and at this point in time Yuu thought himself to be insane to be still standing before Kouyou’s father like this, hardly clothed in anything.  
   
“Seriously, Rena, I told you we needed to call. Kouyou’s not your little boy anymore, he has his own…  _commitments_ , too.”  
   
 _Oh_ , Yuu was never going to live this first meeting down.  
   
“N…Nice to meet you, Mr and Mrs Takashima,” Yuu managed to choke out, finally realizing the severity of the situation, watching as Kouyou bestowed upon him a pitiful glance. In Kouyou’s defense, he  _did_ warn the raven-haired. “Um… I’m going to excuse myself and return to the room first.”  
   
“Of course, dear,” Kouyou’s mother was more than accommodating. “We must have disturbed you from your sleep. Don’t mind us at all. Have a good rest, sweetie.”  
   
“I’ll catch up with you later,” Kouyou said to Yuu, sighing and nodding Yuu off.  
   
The moment Yuu eased the bedroom door shut behind him; he crawled back into bed trembling, completely mortified at what had just happened.  
   
~  
   
“What do you mean they’re staying with us?!” Yuu swallowed his saliva thickly down his throat, plain horror splashed right across his face. Kouyou had long settled his parents down into one of his guest rooms and managed to succcessully worm his way out of a mandatory conversation, returning back to Yuu’s side in bed as fast as he could in order to provide an explanation.  
   
“It’s only for a night,” Kouyou placated, not too pleased with the sudden news either. It wasn’t so much so that he detested being around his parents, but more of the fact that he had been caught completely off-guard and hadn’t any time to prepare for it. Kouyou wasn’t exactly fond of surprises himself, even though he admittedly liked to give romantic surprises to his lover. “My parents have been travelling the world on some sort of escapade, slash re-invention of a honeymoon, and were making a transit in this city. So they thought they would drop by and pay us a visit.”  
   
“But I…” All color drained from Yuu’s face at the thought of facing Kouyou’s parents again later. “Oh, god. They probably think I’m a slut.” Seriously.  _Even_  Yuu would think himself to be a slut if his first meeting with his son’s boyfriend had gone like this.  
   
“That’s not true,” Kouyou affirmed, arms moving to circle around Yuu’s waist assuringly. “Mother already likes you from all the nice things I’ve been telling her about you. Father has always been more reserved, but he never questions my choice in dating partners. Plus, I’m thirty-five, for god’s sake. They’d have to be in plain denial if they don’t think I’m having sex.” 

“But I’m not even prepared for this,” Yuu moaned out, frightened eyes gazing up into Kouyou’s ones. “I don’t know what your parents like, what they dislike, how to behave, how I can possibly coddle up to them–”  
   
“Hey, hey, babe,” Kouyou hurriedly calmed the raven down, seeing no reason for his beautiful raven-haired lover to worry. “Look, it doesn’t matter, alright? I love you, so they’ll love you for sure. Trust me on this, alright?” He thumbed the side of Yuu’s pale cheek, caressing him gently. “Don’t look so scared, babydoll. They’ll definitely like you.”  
   
“It’s just… It’s not that I don’t want to meet your parents,” Yuu confessed, his expression disheartened, his head leaning up against Kouyou’s chest. “But you took the day off so we could spend time together. I’m just a little… disappointed.”  
   
Kouyou nodded in understanding, holding Yuu tightly in his gasp. “I know, sweetheart, I feel the same. But don’t worry, okay? It’ll be fine, I’m right here next to you. You’ll do so well with them around. I’ll have to take them out for a nice lunch and dinner later at the mall, but you’ll come with me, right?”  
   
Yuu knew there was no way out of this. As terrified as he was to be around Kouyou’s parents, Yuu knew that he had to get to know them better if he was ever planning to be a large part of Kouyou’s life. He had to get to know Kouyou’s family, and build rapport with them. There was no shortcut way around this.  
   
And Yuu definitely had to show them he was so much more than a naked figure wrapped in some flimsy blankets.  
   
“I’ll go,” Yuu said, trying to will some determination up to get him going through the day. He  _had_ to leave a good impression on his future in-laws, since he was technically planning to eventually marry Kouyou and spend the rest of his life with him. “I guess I should start by making some breakfast for all of us.”  
   
“You’re not going back to sleep?” Kouyou asked, concerned for his lover’s health. “We barely slept. You’d be so tired later.”  
   
“ _Nnn_ , it’s fine. We can’t sleep and leave your parents hanging around the apartment. I’ll go prepare some breakfast so we can all talk over the dining table.” Yuu paused in thought when he remembered  _what_ exactly had just taken place atop the dining table last night.  
   
“Well, what they don’t know won’t hurt them...”  
   
“I better make sure it’s cleaned properly,” Kouyou laughed, knowing what his lover was referring to. “Wouldn’t want them discovering any… unsightly evidence of last night.”  
   
“You do that,” Yuu smiled up to the blond, leaning his head up to peck a soft kiss against Kouyou’s lips, this time with renewed confidence.  
   
“We’ll rock this day, promise.”  
   
~  
   
Months of practice certainly paid off. Yuu had grown accustomed to making breakfast for Kouyou in the morning, so much so that he was well versed in whipping up many variant dishes, and was almost spoilt for choice when it came to deciding what to cook for Kouyou’s parents. Since he wasn’t entirely sure what they liked, Yuu decided to play it safe by cooking up a plate of bacon, sausages, eggs and toasted bread, crossing his fingers that it would appeal to their tastebuds. Living with Kouyou also meant that the fridge was almost always well-stocked up, since the older man disliked having it empty; and so Yuu wasn’t all too worried when it came to having to prepare enough portions for all of them.  
   
Whilst Yuu cooked, Kouyou busied himself with setting the table, and many times they kissed in between or – in Yuu’s case – got his butt slapped by Kouyou as the older man walked past him in the kitchen. Yuu would shoot him a glare, mouthing silently that Kouyou’s parents were just down the corridor and Kouyou had better  _watch it,_ but Kouyou would laugh and kiss him into oblivion, saying it didn’t matter and nothing would stop him from appreciating that ‘finely sculptured piece of ass’.  
   
When all was ready, Yuu had Kouyou call his parents in to be seated down for breakfast, whilst Yuu greeted them nervously for the second time, this time more properly clothed ( _anything_ would have been better than being seen in just blankets, though) with a sweet, affable smile plastered against Yuu’s tense face. Kouyou sat Yuu down next to him, while Kouyou’s parents sat opposite them. The both of them appeared to still be ogling at how grandiose Kouyou’s place was, and how exquisite Kouyou’s taste was in furniture.  
   
Kouyou’s parents were nice people, really. Kouyou had mentioned before that he’d come from a middle-class background, and Yuu certainly got that vibe from them – unlike the upperclass, haughty one he’d gotten from Christine. Although they spoke well – now Yuu  _definitely_ know where Kouyou had gotten that British accent from; his mother articulated her words in such a polished, refined manner that it could put Christine and many other upperclass-born businessmen to shame – Kouyou’s parents dressed modestly, not too ostentatious or pretentious, and had aged rather well into their looks, harboring kind countenances on their faces. They seemed to be the type of parents to have brought Kouyou up with a stern hand, but with much love and support behind their strictness, and Yuu guessed they must have been great parents to produce such a man of fine calibre. It was easy to tell that they absolutely doted on their only son, though, now that Kouyou was all grown up and needn’t any more reprimanding; they asked avidly after Kouyou to Yuu, making sure their son had been eating well, sleeping well, and taking regular breaks from work.  
   
Yuu let it slip that Kouyou had been working doubly hard the past few weeks, much to Kouyou’s dismay, and it’d only made Kouyou’s parents fuss over him even more, though a hint of pride was detectable upon their faces.  
   
Kouyou’s parents also proved to be very humble, very easy-going, and even open-minded in the way they spoke of Kouyou’s dating status; they were happy to see that Kouyou had taken on a new partner after a year long break of staying single. Apparently his break-up with Christine had left them worrying for Kouyou’s future, and to see him happily dating again brought them immense relief.  
   
And when it came to Yuu, they were too happy to compliment Yuu’s cooking, seeing him fit to take care of their son. Yuu realized at the end of it all that Kouyou’s parents  _truly_ respected Kouyou’s decision when it came to who he dated – they trusted Kouyou’s taste, and so long as they saw that the person Kouyou chose could help take care of their son for them in their absence, they were contented with whomever Kouyou had chosen. Their son’s heart and physical health was their main priority over everything else, and they cared little about Yuu’s socio-economic status, his background, or whatever he was studying. It really took a load of pressure off Yuu’s shoulders, since he’d been afraid he wouldn’t be able to live up to the expectations of how Christine had been as Kouyou’s ex-girlfriend. It seemed like as long as Kouyou looked to be contented, Kouyou’s parents would be contented, however.  
   
There reached a point in their conversation where it started taking a drastic turn, though, when they started asking for Yuu’s age, a seemingly simple question but one that Yuu had been extremely nervous about answering.  
   
“I’m twenty-one,” Yuu then revealed, face washed with incomprehensible guilt. “Turning twenty-two, soon.” Yuu knew that his age was nothing that he should have been ashamed about, but he also knew the age difference he had with Kouyou might be unforgivable to some, especially to people who were considerably older. Even though Yuu had gotten himself into their good books so far, there was no telling they might change their minds and begin disapproving of Yuu’s affiliation with Kouyou after this.  
   
To Yuu’s horror, the look on Kouyou’s mother’s face turned almost apprehensive after hearing his answer; as if she was starting to doubt the validity of their relationship. Kouyou, sensing the sudden change in their conversation’s atmosphere, rushed to assure his parents it wasn’t anything to be worried about.  
   
“Yuu’s very mature for his age,” Kouyou put on a convincing front. “It’s why I fell in love with him. You know I never make rash decisions when it comes to dating.”  
   
“He’s young,” his father stated, turning equally hesitant as he looked over to Yuu, who had unconsciously begun biting against his lip in nervousness. “Much younger than your previous partners, Kouyou.”  
   
“I’m devoted to Kouyou,” Yuu hastily assured them. “I know it might seem as if we might have nothing in common to talk about, but we really do love each other, despite all our differences. I think that’s what makes our relationship great. We’re able to understand each other despite how different we are.”  
   
Kouyou, who had quickly grown anxious over his parents’ reactions, cast Yuu an approving look, liking how nicely Yuu had worded their relationship to be. The blond reached a hand over to tug at Yuu’s one, interlacing their fingers together, keeping them locked tight for comfort.  
   
“Sweetheart, it’s not that we have anything against how young you are,” Kouyou’s mother’s gaze was gentle as she looked upon the raven. It soothed Yuu momentarily. “We would never doubt Kouyou’s choice in his partners. If he says he loves you, we know he definitely has reason to do so. But… Kouyou,” she turned her attention abruptly back to her son, a grim look on her face.  
   
“You’re not young anymore. Your father and I… Well, frankly, we’ve been waiting for you to surprise us one day with news of marriage. We wouldn’t even mind if you hadn’t invited us to your wedding – we just want to know you’ve tied the knot.”  
   
Now  _that_ was something Kouyou hadn’t been expecting to hear. Kouyou blinked at his mother’s words. Twice. “ _What_?” Wait, had they misunderstood his mother’s intention all these while?  
  
“Yuu’s so young,” his mother lamented, eyes looking over devastatingly to Yuu. “We might have to wait for at least another three years for this one, Shinji.” Kouyou’s father made a low grunt in response.  
   
Then, sounding almost hopeful, the older woman started pleading with the raven-haired. “You won’t be a darling and marry Kouyou for us before you graduate, won’t you, Yuu? Kouyou’s getting on with age. We’d love it if we could see him get married before either one of us has a foot in the grave.”  
   
 _Oh_ , so this explained why Kouyou’s parents had looked so discouraged to hear of Yuu’s age. It didn’t have anything to do with disapproval of how young Yuu was, or his potential immaturity, or anything like that. Now that Kouyou had found a new partner, his parents had assumed that their son would finally be losing his bachelor status and would be settling down himself, perhaps even getting married within a year or two. This knowledge instantly alleviated the weight upon Yuu’s shoulders, now that he knew the problem didn’t lie with him personally per say.  
   
Although Yuu no longer felt threatened on his end, Kouyou on the other hand, was fervently trying to keep it all together, willing himself not to blush at how much his mother was pressurizing Yuu to marry him.  _Even_ Kouyou wasn’t so forceful when it came to discussing this matter of subject with his raven lover.  
   
“Mother,  _please_ , it’s a little too early to be discussing marrriage,” Kouyou averted his gaze away from Yuu, turning abnormally shy, and for some reason – Yuu had a slight suspicion the blond had grown too embarrassed to look him further in the eye. “Yuu’s still so young. It’s a big decision for him to make.”  
   
“But it’s not a big decision for you, is it?” His mother countered back, easily reading in between the lines. She knew her son better than anyone else. “I know you’d love to get married too, Kouyou. And if you think you’ve found the one, I say you put a ring on it as soon as you can.”  
   
“Don’t stress our poor son out,” Kouyou’s father was chuckling, patting a hand against his wife’s shoulder. “He’s clearly flustered by this conversation. I daresay he’s been too shy to even raise it up with his beau.”  
   
Yuu brought a hand to his mouth, muffling the delighted giggle that was escaping him. Jesus Christ. Kouyou’s parents were turning his blond lover so shy it was  _so_ adorable. His fingers still interlocked with Kouyou’s ones, Yuu stroked at Kouyou’s hand, providing him reassurance.  
   
“We’ve talked about it once or twice, actually,” Yuu piped up, hoping to help take some of the attention away from Kouyou. “Marriage is definitely something we have on our minds. I’d love to spend the rest of my life with Kouyou.”  
   
Kouyou’s face lit up at Yuu’s words, a bashful smile widening upon his face. “We’ve indeed talked about it. And I already know Yuu’s the one I want to marry, and we’ll do it eventually, but we don’t want to rush into anything right now just yet.”  
   
“Oh, Kouyou dear,” his mother fretted. “If you wait any longer, grey strands might start to come out. Do you  _really_ think you’re getting any younger? I would also like to be able to attend my son’s wedding while I’m still alive, thank you very much.”  
   
“It’s a fairly big decision to make,” Kouyou frowned, shaking his head, though he understandood where his mother was coming from. At their age, time was of essence to them. “Mother, these things can’t be decided upon overnight. Plus, it’s not only my life we’re talking about here. It’s Yuu’s, too.”  
   
“But Yuu has already given us his OK, hasn’t he?” the older woman turned to the raven-haired, smiling encouragingly to him.  
   
Yuu’s heart thumped loudly through his ears as he felt all eyes turn towards him, waiting anxiously for the raven’s answer. Even Kouyou had fallen silent, curious as to what his younger lover would answer in response to his mother’s plea.  
   
Yuu ultimately found the voice to speak. “It’s… It’s not a bad idea, I mean, to marry before graduation. I mean… It’s an idea I’m not opposed to. If it’s with Kouyou. It’s a crazy idea, but…” He felt Kouyou squeeze his hand in his. “I think things have always been crazy with Kouyou. So… I’m not scared. I’m never scared when I’m with him.”  
   
Kouyou could hardly control himself at the sight of Yuu declaring his love so openly for the blond like this. A crazed grin on his face, Kouyou leaned his head down and kissed Yuu softly against the cheek, his fingers threading up through Yuu’s raven hair. Yuu winced in response, feigning annoyance, but he leaned into Kouyou’s touch anyway, discreetly smiling to himself.  
   
“Ah, young love,” his father commented, wearing a genial smile. “It’s nice to see the younglings happy.”  
   
“It’s settled, then,” Kouyou’s mother shrieked with glee, happy with what she’d just accomplished. “Now, the next time I hear from both of you, I expect it to be a wedding invitation. Not some carelessly written email from Kouyou talking about things I don’t care about.”  
   
Kouyou turned away from Yuu to narrow his eyes to her. “Mother, I had thought you would appreciate knowing what was going on with the company. It’s been really good for us, so far, our new branches in Europe are pretty much stabilized and have been bringing us steady profits over the course of–”  
   
“Kouyou, dear, I really do love hearing about your work, but I really would have liked to know more about my future son-in-law, too,” she sighed, looking adoringly over to the raven-haired. “Now  _I’m_ excited. I have so many stories to tell you about Kouyou, my sweet child. You might even re-consider marrying Kouyou after you hear all of them.”  
   
“Mother,” Kouyou glared to her. “Don’t scare Yuu away, please.”  
   
“I won’t be scared away,” Yuu promised, smiling to the blond. “I’ve seen every inch of you. Nothing about you scares me anymore.”  
   
Kouyou could do nothing but return his smile, his heart fluttering madly in his chest at the sound of Yuu’s words.  
   
~  
   
When they finally reached the high-end mall Kouyou had drove them to, they quickly split off into two groups. Kouyou’s mother wanted to check out the departmental store, and invited Yuu to come along with her; whereas Kouyou’s father preferred to choose a nice café spot, sit down and have a coffee or two with Kouyou, hoping to hear more of what his son was up to these days. They agreed to re-group for lunch only afterwards.  
   
Yuu wasn’t dumb – he knew Kouyou’s mother had arranged for some one-on-one time with him to assess him better. Without her son around to readily come to Yuu’s defence, it was easier to speak to Yuu privately and gauge his character. As much as Kouyou’s mother wanted her son to get married as soon as possible, she needed to be safely assured that Kouyou would be in good hands, too, before anything else. Even if Yuu had proven his culinary skills to be adequate enough in the kitchen, that wasn’t the sole factor that would determine whether Yuu was well-suited for Kouyou or not.  
   
Frankly speaking, Yuu was almost hysterical at the knowledge that he had inadvertently agreed to a marriage proposal this morning to Kouyou. Sure, they’d already known they would get married eventually, but  _just_  yesterday Yuu had only been frolicking around in a maid costume, parading his ass around to Kouyou. Fast-forward a day later, and Yuu was about to become his blushing bride. Yuu would laugh at how comedic the situation seemed if it wasn’t so real. It wasn’t that Yuu dreaded marrying Kouyou – everything just seemed to be exploding too fast right now into his face. Meeting the in-laws. Having to pass their tests. Marrying before graduation. Becoming the perfect partner.  
   
 _Man_ , everything got complicated whenever you involved family. Yuu hadn’t been prepared for this at all. All he’d planned to do today was spend a nice day out with Kouyou, and then fuck like bunnies when they got home. He had a feeling Kouyou felt the same, too, and wanted nothing more than to pull Yuu aside and hide them both in the nearest available closet.  
   
As Yuu accompanied the older woman around the departmental store, the raven was uncharacteristically docile, silently still terrified to death and uncertain how he should behave in front of Kouyou’s mother. Yuu knew he shouldn’t be comparing himself with Kouyou’s ex any longer, but he couldn’t help but wonder how well Christine had got along with Kouyou’s mother. Had she liked Christine? How had Christine acted in front of her? Was she talkative? Or did Kouyou’s mother like her obedient and meek, like a typical Japanese housewife?  
   
“Kouyou’s always been a private person, but he can’t hide things from his mother,” the older woman begun, as she fingered a Hawaiian styled dress on the racks, her voice catching Yuu by surprise, drawing him immediately out of his long trail of thought. “He started talking about seeing someone again to me, quickly after he ended his business trip to Europe. That was more than 6 months ago. Did he only meet you then?”  
   
“Oh, no,” Yuu answered quickly. “We’d been dating for at least two months before that. We just… sort of, took a break in-between.” A painful month-long break, that was.  
   
“Mmm, so you’ve known each other for awhile, then,” she noted with satisfaction. “That’s good. Kouyou and the girl before you… What was her name again… Christa?”  
   
“Christine,” Yuu corrected, slightly sour that Kouyou’s ex was being brought up.  
   
“Ah, Christine,” Kouyou’s mother nodded. “They must have dated for at least two years before they decided to take that leap. So I’m sure Kouyou’s serious about you. I’ve just been surprised lately how much he’s been mentioning you in the past few emails he’s been writing to me. Kouyou always says he’s busy, so busy, not even for a call – and I always thought that workaholic side of him led to some form of mild depression in the year before. He was in the dumps for awhile, you know that?”  
   
Akira had long informed Yuu of how the nasty break-up with Christine had shattered Kouyou’s confidence in himself, had subsequently led to Kouyou drowning himself in work, and had aggravated his foul temper at the office. Yuu wasn’t shocked to know that his parents had noticed it, too.  
   
“I’ve heard about it,” Yuu murmured, his heart wrenching at the very thought. Kouyou must have been in so much pain. “Kouyou’s very capable, and I guess that’s why he got appointed to be CEO at such a young age. But he neglects himself sometimes, and forgets he has to take care of himself, too.”  
   
“Kouyou’s so transparent sometimes,” his mother laughed, shaking her head. “He gets upset and then he locks himself in the office and doesn’t eat for days. It’s always been like that, even when he was younger; he pins the blame entirely on himself when things go wrong, and locks himself away. Even  _I_ don’t get as mad at him, as he is to himself, when he makes a mistake. I’m just glad he has Akira around; that handsome boy has been looking out for Kouyou since his college days.”  
   
Yuu uttered a soft laugh as he imagined a much younger Kouyou punishing himself on behalf of everybody else. Kouyou truly was a strange creature. “Akira’s such a good friend to him. Kouyou and I had only been going out for a few weeks when Akira invited me out to coffee to make sure I understood what I was getting into. He wanted know if I was treating this relationship with Kouyou serious, or not, or just a fling. He really cares a lot for Kouyou.”  
   
“He does, doesn’t he,” the older woman smiled at what she’d just heard. She wasn’t surprised. “You know, for a whole year, something snapped inside of Kouyou. The few times I came down to the city to visit my son, something seemed off with him. Something wasn’t right. His father and I were so worried. We thought we’d lost him in exchange for the successful businessman he’d become. And Kouyou’s our only son, so we couldn’t bear to see him so upset.  
   
But things have been taking a drastic turn lately. Things are different now. Kouyou’s calmer. I can see it, when I speak to him. He’s more carefree. When I call Akira to check on Kouyou, he no longer worries about him. Kouyou’s been talking a lot in his emails to me, too, and he’s been mentioning this pretty raven-haired. He’s always been a private person, so he doesn’t like to overshare; but in the few sentences he wrote about you, it’d only been describing how comforting your presence is, and how happy you make him feel. He talked about your eyes, too, talked about beautiful they are. And now I finally understand why.”  
   
 _Ah._ Yuu felt heat rising to his cheeks. Kouyou hadn’t ever mentioned about writing about Yuu to his parents. “Did he really?” That bastard.  _Always_ keeping secrets from Yuu.  
   
“Kouyou doesn’t lie, especially not to his mother,” she spoke, gazing into Yuu’s heartened eyes. “I can feel the change, too. That’s why I’m inclined to trust you, even though we’ve only just met. Because Kouyou has always been such a good child, but he’s difficult in his own way too, isn’t he? It could get hard attending to him. But I know my son, and I know how kind and giving he can really be. He makes sure his father and I have everything we need. And I’m certain he does the same for you, too.”  
   
Yuu nodded his head furiously in agreement. “Kouyou’s very sweet to me. You could even say he pampers me. Overdoes it, too. It can get infuriating sometimes. He’s so well-off, and I can only do simple things for him in return.”  
   
His mother laughed. “Don’t fight it, dear. I’ve long learnt that Kouyou accomplishes anything he sets his mind to. That’s why he’s always been such a good student, and such a successful entrepreneur. But underneath all of that, he’s just a man. Kouyou always has good intentions. And I’m happy he found his happiness in you.”  
   
Yuu smiled coyly to himself. “I’m so lucky to have him, too. It must be thanks to you, too. You had a hand in raising him, and that’s why he turned out to be such a good man. I can hardly believe he is real, sometimes.”  
   
“Don’t flatter me too much,” the older woman chuckled, brushing it off. “I was lucky to have born such a fine child. Plus, I’m glad to see that Kouyou’s been involving himself in activities outside of work,” she casually gestured to Yuu’s neck at this point, immediately turning Yuu’s face bright red, leading the raven to realize that the scarf he’d put on had loosened around his neck and fallen down mid-way, exposing the purple-red hickeys Kouyou had left upon him just last night.  
   
Kouyou had overdone it with the love bites,  _again_. They trailed all the way down the side of his neck to his shoulder, and Yuu had to make sure he put on a shirt with sleeves, as well as a long scarf, to cover all of them up before leaving the house this morning.  
   
“It’s too easy to tell, sweetie,” she grinned, waving off Yuu’s embarrassment. “No one wears a scarf and long sleeves in this type of weather. I was young once, I understand. I’m happy Kouyou’s been busy with you.”  
   
“I, um…” Yuu’s fingers tugged at his scarf, pulling it up to his cheeks. “I’m really sorry you had to see me like this. And um, in the morning, too. I really should have put clothes on. That was really rude of me.”  
   
“The both of you weren’t expecting our visit, so it’s fine,” Kouyou’s mother smiled. “Nothing to worry about. It had been my decision to drop by without notice, and to be honest; I was silently hoping I would get a sight like that, too. It’s nice to know what my son’s up to. It’s not a thing I disapprove.”  
   
Yuu breathed out a sigh of relief at her words. He’d thought he would have been condemned a whore at first sight. “That’s good, then. I’m really happy you understand. To be honest, I’m dead  _nervous_ to be talking with you. I don’t…” the raven-haired found himself confessing. “I don’t know if I’m good enough for Kouyou in your eyes.”  
   
A frown quickly replaced the smile on the elder woman’s face. “Oh, sweetie. You have no need to worry. I should be the one worrying. You’re so young and you still have a whole life ahead of you. I certainly hope I hadn’t come across as forceful when I asked you if you’d marry Kouyou. I’m just desperate for him to tie the knot, so I needn’t worry as much about him anymore. But I know Kouyou is old, and perhaps it’d be too much to ask for you to make such a big decision in your life. I’m just worried for Kouyou, that’s all. I want him to get some stability soon.”  
   
Yuu shook his head. “I understand. I’d feel the same if I was in your place. It’s something we have to think about, too – Kouyou and I. We can’t… put this off for long. We have to make decisions about our future.”  
   
Being apart from Kouyou in the last few weeks had given him plenty of space and time to think about many things, his future with Kouyou being one of them. Personally, Yuu hadn’t thought he would going through the relationship motions so quick, seeing his encounter with Kouyou had been left to chance right from the start. Yuu hadn’t thought he’d fall in love so fast, hadn’t thought he’d hurt so much, hadn’t thought he’d even be finding his soulmate so soon. Yuu had even given up hope at the beginning of this year on ever being able to find time to have a proper relationship with someone, seeing as he was leading the sugar baby life; that was, until he met Kouyou, setting things suddenly into motion.  
   
Although Yuu had fallen into this so unexpectedly, Yuu knew his relationship with Kouyou wasn’t a very conventional one, and he knew there were factors he had to consider when it came to advancing in this relationship – one of them namely being Kouyou’s age. Kouyou was at a period of his life where,  _customarily_  for a man, would be good to obtain some stability, get settled down and perhaps even build a family. Yuu had always known he’d had to be sensitive to such a factor at the back of his head, but he hadn’t ever had the chance to confront such a reality until Kouyou’s parents stepped in. Yuu knew Kouyou most likely was aware of his time ticking, too, but the older blond wouldn’t ever bring it up if he thought he’d frighten Yuu into commitment. Kouyou was always so careful and sensitive to Yuu’s feelings; he wouldn’t ever want to force Yuu into anything he didn’t want to.  
   
Besides, they had been having such a splendid time with each other so far, living with each other in domestic bliss. It already resembled a marriage, and there was no need to rush to obtain a wedding certificate to cement their love for each other. Being able to wake up to each other every morning in bed was good enough for them for now, and they didn’t need anything more. And perhaps that was what had distracted them thus far for the past half a year.  
   
But Yuu had an inkling deep inside his heart that a sentimental man like Kouyou would definitely appreciate the traditional marriage ceremony, as well as a piece of paper to sign that would declare they were each other’s, and no one else’s. Kouyou would certainly like that. And Yuu knew he wanted that, too. He simply never truly thought about when he’d do it; he’d assumed after they would potentially do it after he had graduated from university, but now that Kouyou’s mother had lay it all out for him, Yuu knew Kouyou would be older, almost hitting the big 4-0, by then. And there was nothing wrong with marrying at 40 years of age, but Yuu knew it’d be so much nicer if they could get married sooner.  
   
No one was getting younger. Yuu would be selfish if he overlooked this aspect and made everyone adjust to his own timeline.  
   
“In all honesty, regardless if marriage happens or not, as long as Kouyou’s happy, I’d be happy,” the older woman sighed, staring off into the distance. “That’s what matters the most. I’ll leave him in your hands, Yuu. Now that I’ve gotten old, I don’t have many opportunities to see him on a daily basis anymore. But as long as I know he has someone looking out for him, loving him, standing right by him… I think I’d be all right. You can do that for me, Yuu, can’t you?”  
   
Well, marriage was too heavy a subject to decide upon so quickly within this day; but  _this_ Yuu could do. Yuu beamed up to her, flashing wide open the sweetest, sincerest smile he could muster. And Kouyou’s mother must have known he meant it, because the hesitance in her eyes immediately disappeared at the sight.  
   
“I can, Mrs Takashima. That I promise you.”


	47. Chapter 47

The day went on well, far better than Yuu had expected. Yuu managed to continue bonding with Kouyou’s parents over the course of lunch and dinner, hear embarrassing stories about Kouyou when he’d been growing up, learn more about his family’s ancestry and what his parents did for a living before their retirement. It turned out that his mother had been a teacher at a pre-school, whilst his father had been a marine engineer.  
  
Kouyou’s family background certainly couldn’t compare to someone like Yutaka’s, but that wasn’t to say their lifestyle was ever lacking; they were well-off enough to afford their essentials and occasionally, their wants, and they made sure Kouyou never missed out on anything children his age would get. It was only after Kouyou managed to climb his way in ranks to become a CEO that he’d encouraged his parents to go for an early retirement, and he’d been the one to suggest for them to start travelling in the first place, agreeing to pay for every cent for every one of their trips. When his parents spoke of this, their faces were again beaming with pride, and Yuu had smiled to himself then, knowing they had every reason to be extremely proud of their filial son.  
  
During their conversations, though, Kouyou was shame-faced for the most part, as any child would when their parents were spilling all their dirt to their significant other, and the older man was unnaturally silent throughout. What little words Kouyou would utter would be to plead with his mother and father to  _say no more_ , and many times he would glance over to Yuu nervously to gauge his younger lover’s reaction to hearing about what a dork he used to be.  
  
They ended their night early, returning home when it’d only been about nine in the evening. Kouyou’s parents had a morning flight the next day and needed as much rest they could get, and so Kouyou made sure they headed home as soon as they could.  
  
Naturally, there was nothing else Yuu and Kouyou could do, since even switching the television on in the living room might disturb Kouyou’s parents from sleeping, so the couple headed to bed as well. They scarcely slept the night before, anyway, and deserved some rest themselves after their exhausting day out. After brushing their teeth and changing out into their sleepwear, Kouyou crawled into bed while he watched Yuu sit by the side of the bed, setting the alarm clock in his hand.  
  
Kouyou laughed, finding the scene all too adorable, and in turn Yuu shot a glare right at him.  
  
“What’s so funny,” Yuu muttered sorely, placing the alarm clock back down onto the bedside table. “I have to set an alarm for tomorrow so we can wake up in time to see your parents off.”  
  
“Nothing,” Kouyou grinned cheekily. “It just occurred to me how domestic we’ve become.”  
  
Yuu rolled his eyes, though this time it was with a smile. He inched closer to Kouyou on the bed, pulling the covers over them. “I thought we’d established that long ago already. Anyway, it’s a good sign. It’ll make the transition to marriage life even easier, won’t it?”  
  
Yuu thought it’d be a good time now to talk about the one thing that had been on their minds but always went unspoken.  
  
Kouyou’s smile immediately evaporated off his face at the mention, when he realized Yuu had taken his mother’s words seriously into account.  
  
“Oh, Yuu… About what my mother said… Well, you know how old people are. I don’t want you to feel like you have to fulfill her wishes, or anything.”  
  
Yuu’s eyes flickered up to his lover apprehensively, his lips speaking in a quiet whisper. “It’s… something we need to talk about, isn’t it? I know it’s something important to you.”  
  
Kouyou looked troubled. His eyes appeared conflicted, as if he were to be debating internally to himself. After a short while of deliberation, he finally managed a carefully thought out response. “Yuu, I’m not going to lie. Marriage is something that’s been on my mind. But it’s not something I want any of us to do at this stage. It’d be detrimental to do so, and I know you feel the same.”  
  
Yuu nodded, understanding how he felt straight away. “I know. It’s a huge thing. It’s not something that we should rush into. You never got married with Christine, even though you were with her for six years.”  _Even_  Akira had been expecting them to be wedded eventually.  
  
Kouyou hurriedly answered to that, afraid that Yuu was getting the wrong idea about his thoughts on marriage. “Yuu, that’s a completely different case. I never felt ready with Christine. Never felt ready to take it a step further, never felt ready to settle down and have kids. I couldn’t imagine a future like that with her back then, and it was only after I met you that I suddenly understood why. She hadn’t been the one, Yuu. No matter how long I stayed with her, I would never have felt ready to jump into marriage with her. But it’s different with you.”  
  
Yuu’s heart thumped hard behind his rib cage. “Really?” But he knew Kouyou meant it; he felt it, in the chilling silence, and in the fondful way Kouyou was currently gazing to him. “So… if I’m understanding you correctly, you’d have no qualms about taking me to a wedding registry right now and signing your name against a wedding certificate.”  
  
Kouyou let out a loving sigh, and leaned his hand over to brush at Yuu’s hair. “Yuu, if you know me well enough – and I think you do – you know I’d do it in a heartbeat. I’m ready to spend the rest of my life with you, sweetheart. In fact, I already am doing so.”  
  
Yuu broke into a satisfied smile at his reply. “You know I’d do the same too, don’t you? I mean, if we went to a registry right now. I’d sign it, too.”  
  
Kouyou let slip a few chuckles, shaking his head. “I know you will, sweetheart. But that doesn’t mean you have to do it.” His face morphed into a look of concern again. “Please don’t let what my mother said affect you.”  
  
“But what if I want to,” Yuu stubbornly said, his fingers firmly gripping Kouyou’s hand into his, halting Kouyou in his brushing of Yuu’s hair. “I really don’t mind it. Getting married to you. I could do it anytime.”  
  
Kouyou’s eyes dilated at as he registered the determination in Yuu’s voice, and his face gradually turned crestfallen at Yuu’s words, realizing Yuu wasn’t going to change his mind anytime soon about this subject matter. “Yuu, I don’t want it like this, alright? You wouldn’t be saying this to me right now if my parents hadn’t dropped by today and planted all these ideas into your head. I really don’t want you to rush into anything. You’re so young,  _god_ , so young, Yuu. At your age, I was hardly thinking about marriage.”  
  
“Well, that’s  _you_ ,” Yuu huffed, turning rather annoyed with the way Kouyou was comparing Yuu to Kouyou’s past self. Age was a sensitive subject between the both of them, and he didn’t fancy not being taken seriously just because he was a decade younger than his lover. “And what if our roles were reversed and you had met someone like me when you were twenty-one? Would you still be condemning marriage at this point?”  
  
“If I had gotten married when I was twenty-one, I would never have become the CEO I am today,” Kouyou retorted, irritance flashing in his eyes, not liking how Yuu was comparing the both of them in this manner. “I’d probably still be working at a desk at age thirty-five, picking up coffee for my boss, and struggling to make ends meet for my impoverished family that I had so selfishly wanted to have. Yuu, you have  _no_ idea what you’re talking about right now. And I won’t allow you to make any rash decision based on any gut feeling you think you might have. This discussion is over, alright?”  
  
Yuu’s expression twisted in shock at the harsh tone Kouyou was suddenly using with him, having so rarely experienced it before. When Kouyou put a foot down in something, he  _meant_ it. And it made Yuu feel like the only reason the older man was looking down upon his viewpoint was entirely based on the fact that Yuu was young, and that he hadn’t a proper mindset to think for himself yet.  
  
And Yuu was never one to back down from an argument, if he didn’t think himself to be in the wrong.  
  
“You’re always saying bullshit like you love me because I’m mature for my age,” Yuu snapped, and he didn’t miss the way Kouyou flinched sorely as Yuu used his own words against him. “But that isn’t what you really think, isn’t it? You’re only now showing what you truly think about me. That I’m too young, and that I don’t have a mind of my own. Wow, I’m  _actually_ wondering what you truly like about me, then. Is it because I’m young, and that’s why I’m easy to manipulate? It’s easy for you to use me and shape me into your ideal lover, isn’t it? After all, that must explain all the lingerie. And if I say something out of line, you won’t hesitate to correct me on it. And if I – _unfortunately_  – make a decision for myself that you don’t approve of, you’ll rush to tell me that I’m too young and therefore incapable of making any decision, ever.

What I’m getting from you now is that you feel anything I do right now will be a mistake that my older self will regret. I must have been tiring you out all these while, haven’t I? Needing you to overlook every decision I make. How fucking tiring it must have been. Or perhaps that’s exactly what you like, and maybe it has something to do with a sadistic controlling fetish you have, Takashima Kouyou.”  
  
Yuu never liked getting into fights, and his approach to arguments had always been much calmer, had always been much more sensitive to the other’s feelings. Yuu much preferred backing down and allowing the other to win the fight if that meant all would be well with their relationship with each other, but the one thing Yuu  _couldn’t_ stand was this feeling of being attacked without any good reason at all. Kouyou’s only reason for denying Yuu right now was wholly based on the fact that Yuu was  _too fucking young_ , and frankly Yuu thought it to be a whole load of crap.  
  
And when Yuu felt attacked, he wasn’t going to hold back. He wanted Kouyou to understand how ridiculous his insinuations were, and how much it made Yuu feel belittled and mocked at. So Yuu allowed his thoughts to flow freely past his lips, shocking Kouyou right into silence.  
  
Once all the words had left Yuu’s lips, though, the raven-haired immediately realized he probably shouldn’t have done so. The last time he’d lashed out like this to Kouyou, the older man ended up leaving for a month-long trip to Europe.  
  
And right now, the hurt that had slowly started streaking across Kouyou’s face was crystal clear. The older man clearly hadn’t been expecting a retaliation, much less one that was as wounding as this.  
  
But Yuu was still too stubborn to regret it. Kouyou shouldn’t have put Yuu down earlier like that. He  _shouldn’t_ have.  
  
“Is that what you really think of me.” Kouyou sounded tired, breaking eye contact with Yuu, turning his head wearily to the side. “It is, isn’t it. You think I’m doing this because I like controlling you. You don’t think it’s because I love and care for you at all.”  
  
Yuu  _still_ didn’t want to admit he was in any wrong for having snapped at Kouyou like that, though his heart quietly ached at how heartbroken Kouyou suddenly looked.  
  
“I thought you’d be happy if I told you I wanted to get married,” Yuu said, lowering his voice just slightly from before, now that he realized Kouyou wasn’t going to put up a fight like Yuu thought he would. “Kou, your parents want it, too. And I’m only doing this because I care for you. I want you to get settled down as soon as you can. It’s not like marriage will change anything. We’re already living together. I just thought it’d be nice to have marriage to our name. It wouldn’t make any difference to me. I wouldn’t mind it.  
  
But you’re telling me all these things now, saying how I’m too young to understand what I’m getting myself into. And it’s really getting on my nerves, Kou. Because who are you to say that I can’t make decisions based on the way I feel, and based on my heart alone? The way you’re speaking to me now makes me feel like I’m not being taken seriously at all, and it makes me wonder if you ever took me seriously all the other times I’ve been with you.”  
  
Kouyou inhaled sharply at that mention, Yuu’s words slashing like sharp knives right down into his heart. His eyes still remaining focused on the wall in front of him, Kouyou sunk his head down against the pillows, unable to will his crushed self to return his gaze to Yuu.  
  
Yuu felt a small ounce of regret seeping into his heart, wondering if he’d gone far too overboard with his words.  
  
“Of course I want to marry you,” Kouyou spoke so softly that Yuu had to strain his ears to do so in the silence. “Yuu, it’s not as if you don’t understand the kind of man I am. I accidentally told you I loved you a week after we met. I jokingly asked you to move in with me three weeks after that. I’ve never taken it slow with you, and it’s only because I’m so anxious to have you by my side. And now we’ve reached a phase where things can slow down a little. I feel secure you’ll stay. I can take care of you easier now that you live with me. I can provide for you, give you anything you want. And for once, in our relationship, everything’s moving the way it’s supposed to. We’re happy together. We talk to each other everyday. Everything’s going so well.”  
  
Yuu pursed his lips together, hearing the exhaustion in Kouyou’s voice. “I already know I want to marry you, Kouyou. Whether we do it now, or ten years later, it doesn’t make a difference. And I don’t want to do it when it’s too late.”  
  
“What do you mean too late?” Kouyou asked, uncomfortable with the way Yuu had phrased it. “There’s no such thing as too late, sweetheart. Just because I’m thirty-five now doesn’t mean you have to rush into anything for me.”  
  
“See, you’re always saying ‘you don’t have to do this for me’, ‘I don’t want you to rush into anything’, but is it really okay for you to get married only four years later? That’s still a long way to go, Kou. Why aren’t you thinking for yourself?” Yuu pointed out, exasperated.  
  
Kouyou finally turned his eyes back to Yuu, a look of bewilderment on his face. “Because it doesn’t matter to me what age I get married at. I’m only thinking for you. But it seems like I finally understand why you’re so resolved on marrying me as soon as possible now. You’re only thinking about me, too, aren’t you?”  
  
Yuu fluttered his eyes shut, letting out a soft sigh. “Kouyou, I’m not going to deny that I want to do this for you. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want it, too. If it were something I was truly unsure about, I wouldn’t do it. And I know this marriage thing isn’t something we have to jump into straight away. It’s not like I’m asking you to marry me tomorrow. I’m just asking us to put it at the back of our heads, and perhaps work towards it over the course of a year or something. We could get married next year. Or if we’re not ready, then maybe the year after that. But nothing beyond that. Let’s make it some sort of goal, alright?”  
  
Kouyou appeared relatively comforted as compared to how he’d reacted before, now that he knew Yuu was giving some thought and planning to it. He’d assumed Yuu was going to jump right into it.  
  
“A year or two. Yeah, that could work. I could accept that.”  
  
Perhaps, given time, Yuu might even change his views on the whole notion of marriage altogether. And even if he didn’t, and was still interested in getting married early, Kouyou wouldn’t object. Just as long as Yuu had mulled over it for an extended period of time and made his decision after giving it much thought; Kouyou wouldn’t mind anything at all. He only cared about Yuu’s happiness above all, and wanted Yuu to make sure he made all the right decisions for himself.  
  
Yuu found reason to smile again, happy with Kouyou’s answer.  
  
“I should have said that right from the very start, shouldn’t I?”  
  
Kouyou managed a small smile of his own. “You probably should have. I think you might have frightened me when you asked me if I’d sign a certificate with you tomorrow. Not that I would have minded, but I really,  _really_  didn’t want us to get married based on any rashful emotional decision. Besides, I haven’t even proposed to you yet. I really hate how we’re talking about marriage already, when I haven’t even gotten the chance to give you a ring. It just doesn’t feel right.”  
  
Yuu’s eyes turned to slits, suddenly realizing the real reason Kouyou had gotten so mad at him earlier. “Oh,  _now_  I get it. It’s a manly pride thing again. You got annoyed I was one step ahead of you and was discussing marriage even before you had the chance to propose to me as per tradition.”  
  
Kouyou frowned. “That’s not true. Well, it is to a certain extent, but I would only have proposed if I thought you were ready. And my mother talking you into marrying me doesn’t count. It only makes me feel like you’re marrying me because of my mother, and it doesn’t make me feel like you’re choosing to marry me because you love me.”  
  
Yuu went silent after hearing Kouyou’s words, understanding that  _that_ had been the main concern of Kouyou’s from the very beginning. Kouyou only wanted Yuu to make decisions for all the right reasons, and not because he was being coerced into doing so.  
  
“We’ve been together so long now, and you still doubt my love for you,” Yuu murmured with a low sigh, and then he was aligning his body right up against Kouyou’s, and leaning his head over into Kouyou’s neck. Kouyou’s familiar cologne always smelled so heavenly. Yuu never wanted it to go away. “Why is that?”  
  
Kouyou’s arm slid down to Yuu’s waist, tightening a grip around him, his lips hovering just above Yuu’s head. “Because I still can’t believe I found you, sometimes. Can you really blame me? Especially after what you said, earlier – about you feeling like I’m manipulating you, choosing you because you’re young, turning you into my ideal lover… Is that how you really feel about me? You know I only stop you from making the decisions that I know you might potentially regret. You know I only say these things because I care for you. And all along I thought I was doing good; all along I thought I was doing my part, because I’m much older, and I have experience that could be of value to you.  
  
But maybe what you’re saying is right. I’m imposing the way I think onto you, and it can even come off as controlling. That is the last thing in the world I want you to feel when you’re with me. Christine always said I was controlling and insensitive. That’s why she left me. Because I wasn’t in a healthy state of mind to deal properly with relationship affairs at that time. And now you’re telling me I’m doing the same to you. So I’m starting to question myself yet again. Just a little bit.”  
  
Yuu raised himself up from bed as soon as he heard Kouyou say that, his face painted severely in guilt. Kouyou had gone through  _too_ much to ever fall back into self-doubt again. Akira, and even Kouyou’s mother, had credited Yuu’s relationship with Kouyou to have helped destroy Kouyou’s insecurities about himself, and Yuu wanted it to remain that way. He didn’t want to be the person to bring it all back again.  
  
“Kouyou, I…” Yuu found himself hastily retracting his words. “I didn’t mean what I said earlier. I said it in a fit of anger. I just… You made me feel like… like I wasn’t being taken seriously. I wasn’t thinking straight. I don’t think you’re really manipulating me, Kouyou. If I did, I wouldn’t be lying right here next to you.”  
  
Kouyou watched Yuu’s face for a while, as if trying to decipher his thoughts. The blond still looked incredibly apologetic, holding a solemn expression.  
  
“If I accidentally step out of line, you have to let me know,” Kouyou breathed out, worry clouding his eyes. “In my line of work, it’s so easy to blur the boundaries. Akira understands and doesn’t fault me for it, even when I get frustrated at him sometimes, because he knows how demanding our work can get. But if I come home, and I’m speaking down to you, and I’m saying things that make you feel miserable, you have to let me know. I don’t mean it. And perhaps I hadn’t phrased myself very well earlier, and perhaps that’s what made you mad. Still, I never meant to offend. I was just afraid that you hadn’t thought it through enough. I love you too much to allow you to make any mistake about me. I love you too much to want to pressure you into anything. You’re so precious to me, Yuu. You really are.”  
  
Yuu’s gaze softened at his words, and the raven was instantly crawling up onto Kouyou’s body, his head dipping down to press kisses gently down Kouyou’s cheek. Kouyou’s lips quirked up into a soft smile at the gesture, his hands drifting down to secure Yuu’s waist tightly into his grasp.  
  
“I’m so sorry I got mad,” Yuu whispered, regret tainting his voice. “You didn’t deserve it. I said horrible things because I got mad. You were just trying to care for me.”  
  
Kouyou’s eyes held nothing but adoration for him. “Yuu, it’s nothing. I probably deserved that. I hadn’t realized I was coming off as overbearing.”  
  
“You make me mad sometimes, yes,” Yuu said. “And it’s only because you don’t seem to care for yourself at all. I just want to care for you, yet you won’t let me. You spoil me all the time.”  
  
“Deservingly so,” Kouyou countered with a whisper, his lips falling against Yuu’s forehead. “I’d love to make you my bride, Yuu. I really do. Now that you’ve met my parents, we’ll certainly have to start making arrangements to visit your parents soon. That’d be great, wouldn’t it? It’d make things even more official. Then it’d feel like we’d all be a true family. And then when we’re ready next time, I’d love to have a family with you, too,” the older man’s eyes snapped wide open when he realized he accidentally let slip his innermost thoughts in his emotional state. He quickly grew nervous, afraid of his younger lover’s reaction. “That is, at some point in time in the future. If that’s something you’d like, of course. If it isn’t, we can just forget about it–”  
  
“A family it is,” Yuu smiled, casting aside Kouyou’s doubts, lowering his face to nuzzle his nose against Kouyou’s one. The blond was instantly soothed. “In the future. I promise. And we’ll meet my parents, too. I’ll arrange it. And then marriage afterwards. And a honeymoon, of course. I’d love to finally travel somewhere with you.”  
  
Kouyou’s smile widened, happiness radiating off his face at Yuu’s words. “You don’t have to wait until a honeymoon to travel somewhere with me, sweetheart. The holiday season is coming up. Maybe I’ll take a week or two off and take you somewhere nice.”  
  
Yuu’s face beamed with excitement, resembling just like a little child as he did so. “Really? You’d do that? We don’t have to go somewhere far! Anywhere would be nice to spend with you.”  
  
“Maybe Europe,” Kouyou pecked a quick kiss onto Yuu’s lips. “I’ll bring you to the places I visited before. The scenery’s beautiful. The people are nice. And the hotels are so,  _so_ grand.”  
  
“It sounds amazing, already,” Yuu laughed, liking the idea very much. “But anywhere would be amazing with you. Plus this would also mean I’d get to see you all day long for at least a week. And that’s what most important.”  
  
“It’s settled, then,” Kouyou nodded, chuckling at Yuu’s eagerness. “I’ll inform my secretary tomorrow to block off my schedule. You can start googling for places to visit and then tell me where you’d like to go. I’ll get my PA to book the flights and accommodation for us as soon as we decide upon it.”  
  
“Ah, it’s so nice having a CEO as a lover,” Yuu teased, giggling as he sunk his head down against Kouyou’s chest. “I get so many perks. It feels like Christmas everyday.”  
  
“I  _want_ you to feel like it’s Christmas everyday,” Kouyou ran his fingers down Yuu’s hair. “I want you to be happy all the time.”  
  
“So sweet,” Yuu gushed. “I feel obliged to make some sort of payment to you in return for how nice you’re being to me.”  
  
The raven-haired’s hands had already begun wandering down to the front of Kouyou’s pants, stroking his crotch suggestively.  
  
Kouyou raised an eyebrow, looking amused. “Payment? Normally I wouldn’t object, but… my parents are next door, babydoll.”  
  
“Then I guess we’ll just have to be quiet,” Yuu sang, a finger tugging at the band of Kouyou’s pants, pushing it slowly down. Kouyou made no move to stop him. “Wouldn’t want them waking up, won’t we?”  
  
Except that Yuu had never learnt to be quiet in the bedroom.  
  
And that night he was vocal, oh, so  _very_ vocal, with every deep thrust Kouyou delivered to him from behind; the force from their bodies moving, and their hips gyrating, sending the bed into loud tremors. They’d forgotten to care about being heard by Kouyou’s parents by that point, not when Yuu’s moans of Kouyou’s name sounded like sweet music to his ears, and Kouyou only wanted to hear more, and more,  _and more_ , of it.  
  
They only remembered how to feel shame the next morning, when they were seeing Kouyou’s parents off at the airport, and were met with knowing glints in the elderly couple’s eyes the entire time.  
  
~  
  
Yuu never thought he’d see him again.  
  
Yuu didn’t think he had been actively avoiding  _him_ ; it was just that their university was big, t’was all. Yuu spent so much time having lunch and studying with Takanori nowadays that he never really wandered around campus like he used to, and besides – even when Yuu had been friends with Yutaka, he hardly ever saw the medical student around. Their faculties were far apart, and they only met up at the entrance of their university if they wanted to have lunch or head home together.  
  
Yuu didn’t have much time to think about him, either. Yuu’s thoughts were primarily preoccupied with Kouyou, and Yuu’s own student life at hand, and he’d long pushed melancholic memories with Yutaka out of his mind. Yuu knew it wouldn’t do well for him to linger too much on a friendship that most likely wouldn’t re-surface, and Yuu knew not everyone who entered your life had to stay. Yutaka had been an important part of his life for a while, but circumstances unfortunately forced them apart. And Yuu was okay with that, because sometimes people entered your life to teach you lessons and help you grow. And as long as both of them were happier and were in places they needed to be right now, Yuu found himself to be content.  
  
Although Yuu had promised Yutaka he would keep in contact with him even after he’d moved out, it was a promise that both of them knew would be hard to keep. Because contacting each other again would only rouse up the heartache again and bring back unwanted feelings, wouldn’t it? And Yuu knew the both of them had to be strong for the sake of their own growth. They couldn’t keep dwelling on the past and on the  _what if_ s and on the  _if I had another chance_ s.  
  
And so Yuu never thought he’d see him again.  
  
But Yuu hadn’t been surprised to find the brunet sitting at the further most corner of the library, still hunching his back as per habit, burying his nose into his books. Yuu rarely frequented the library himself, but had to drop by it today to get some reference books for class. Takanori was having an ongoing class currently, and would only meet up with Yuu afterwards. So Yuu found it the perfect time to venture into the deepest depths of the library and roam around the aisles to search for the books he wanted. He’d thought he’d gotten all that he needed, holding an arm full of books, and he was ready to make his way to the front counter when he turned his head and spotted a familiar brunet head of hair sitting in the further most corner of the library.  
  
Yuu didn’t have to look at his face to know it was his best friend.  _Ex_ -best friend. Someone that he’d used to know. Someone that used to know him, too, in every inch and detail. Someone that had looked out for him in every step of the way, someone that had wanted to give Yuu everything he owned in the world.  
  
Yuu hadn’t known what to do for a second. He simply remained rooted to the ground, his lips slightly parted, almost as if he was about to speak to call out for the brunet. But no words would leave his mouth, and Yuu couldn’t bring himself to find a single word to say. Even a simple ‘hello’ would have been nice. Or a casual ‘how have you been’. There was a maelstrom of questions whirling inside Yuu’s head, all of them running through Yuu’s mind at the speed of light.  
  
Would Yutaka appreciate Yuu’s efforts to say hello? Would Yutaka stay and make small talk with him? Or would the brunet get up angrily from his seat and stalk off, without so much as sparing a glance to the raven?  
  
And most importantly, was Yutaka still in love with Yuu?  
  
Yuu spent an enormously large amount of time standing there, in the dead silence of the library, staring at the brunet, his breath caught in his throat. Yuu wasn’t sure how long he exactly stayed motionless like that, and perhaps it might have even only been a short minute or two; but it was long enough for Yutaka to take notice of Yuu’s presence and lift his own head himself, confusion apparent in his eyes as he lay them upon Yuu’s figure.  
  
And then the confusion in those beautiful brown eyes melted away instantenously and was replaced with a warm mixture of relief, hope, and longing.  
  
Yutaka didn’t have to say anything to convey how much he’d missed the raven. Yuu saw it. Yet the words  _I’ve missed you, too_  wouldn’t leave his lips, and Yuu realized it was probably for a good reason why.  
  
“Hey,” Yuu brought himself to finally greet, unable to stand the thick tension that had slowly begun to fill the air. His gaze fell upon Yutaka’s face and Yuu found himself instantly checking for any eyebags, any wrinkles, any exhaustion evident on his face. Yutaka never seemed to get any sleep, not even with Yuu around, and it’d almost become a customary practice for Yuu to do this every time he saw him – examine Yutaka’s face to assess how much rest he’d been getting.  
  
But to Yuu’s surprise, the brunet’s face looked rejuvenated, and considerably much better than before. An abundance amount of relief warmed up Yuu’s heart; Yutaka had listened to him and started taking better care of himself after all.  
  
“Hey,” Yutaka said, lips moving up into a soft smile, his brown eyes twinkling under the dim lights of the library. He appeared genuinely glad to be seeing Yuu again, and Yuu wanted to tell him he felt the same; that it was good, to finally be meeting each other like this after so long, with their uncomfortable past set aside behind them.  
  
“Come here often?” Yuu heard himself asking, though he mentally slapped himself right afterwards for it. Oh,  _god_. Was this how it was going to be like from now onwards? Acting as if they didn’t used to share the same closeness they once had with each other? Acting as if they were mere strangers?  
  
Amusement flashed in Yutaka’s eyes. Apparently Yutaka saw the humor in his question. “Recently, yes. It’s quiet here, and I have access to more materials. It’s a conducive studying environment.”  
  
“Oh,” Yuu nodded his head, still cursing inwardly at how awkward he was acting. Yuu was  _so_ much better than this. “You used to study a lot back at the apartment instead. I guess a change of scenery is good, huh?” But as Yuu forced laughter out, it occurred to the raven that  _perhaps_ he shouldn’t have brought up the apartment.  
  
It was filled with haunting memories of their life together, back when everything was okay. Back when Yuu had been in denial of Yutaka’s love for him, back when Yutaka had kept his feelings to himself, back when Yutaka’s only wish had been to make Yuu happy and nothing else. They’d been nothing more but college students that wanted the best for each other. Yuu thought they’d have been best friends forever.  
  
“Mm. I guess,” Yutaka said in a low voice, face visibly falling as he got reminded of the same things Yuu did. “I had to make sure I stayed around in the apartment, anyway. I had to come back after classes to prepare lunch for us, remember?”  
  
A shard of glass ran right through Yuu’s heart as the memory flashed painfully before his eyes.  _Ah_. So this was the reason he’d pushed them out of his head for so long. Yuu remembered, of course. Yuu remembered everything. Yuu remembered how they used to spend practically all of their time together, especially when it came to helping each other out in the kitchen. Yutaka had mastered every one of Yuu’s favourite dishes, and so did Yuu, for him. If it hadn’t been for Yuu, Yutaka would have skipped every meal and dived straight into his books instead; but Yuu had always been around to look after him, to nag at him, to make sure he ate, his hand always reaching for Yutaka’s one to pull him back into the kitchen. And Yutaka had been just fine.  
  
Everything had been just fine.  
  
“Still living with Takanori?” Yutaka asked out of the sudden, as painfully as it was to do so. Yuu couldn’t detect any bitterness in his voice, though. Yutaka had always known Yuu’s decision to move out had been the right choice at the time, even if he hadn’t exactly wanted it to happen.  
  
Yuu started chewing upon his lips when he realized he’d have to reveal to the brunet that he’d stopped living with Takanori long ago, and had instead gotten back with Kouyou and moved in with him.  _Oh_ , this was bad. There was no reason to lie to Yutaka, however. Yuu was well and happy with Kouyou now, and Yutaka needed to know the truth.  
  
“I moved in with Kouyou long ago,” Yuu confessed, watching as the hope – that Yuu hadn’t even noticed had been there – slowly flickered out of Yutaka’s hazel eyes. “It’s getting serious now. My relationship with him, I mean. Kouyou treats me really well.”  
  
“I see,” Yutaka answered rather calmly, but Yuu knew he hadn’t seen it coming at all. Shock swirled vividly within the depths of his eyes, as if confirming the worst fears he’d harboured all these while to himself. He turned his gaze away from Yuu, as if deliberating over how to respond. Yuu was almost frightened to wait for a further reaction.  
  
“I’m surprised,” the brunet admitted. “The last time I saw Kouyou in that office, he’d been… Broken would be the word I’d use, I guess. But…”  
  
Yutaka sucked in a long, scarring breath, pausing for a long moment until he could force a weak smile back onto his face. Then he lifted his eyes back up to Yuu, sincerely gazing into Yuu’s dark orbs, his words falling off his lips bittersweetly.  
  
“I’m glad he came back for you. If that’s what you really want. I’m… I’m glad, despite everything, Kouyou never gave up. I’m relieved he didn’t. I guess this only proves one thing, after all. That he truly deserves you, and is the perfect man that you’ve been waiting for.”  
  
Yuu had been expecting everything else – but Yuu had not been expecting  _that._  
  
And Yuu was too overwhelmed with relief to speak. Yuu had been fearing the worst. He’d expected Yutaka to get up and leave – possibly even turn vicious with his words to the raven. Yuu hadn’t been expecting a wave of understanding to come over the brunet; to finally be able to accept that Yuu was better off with Kouyou, and that it would do no good to continue wishing misery upon Yuu’s blond CEO lover. Then again, perhaps Yuu had slowly begun assuming the worst out of everyone after the dramatic turn of events that’d happened not too long ago.  
  
Yuu had slowly forgotten how genuinely kind and selfless Yutaka had always been; the man Yuu had opened his closed off heart up to so easily because of Yutaka’s exceptional loyalty to him. He had been best friends with Yutaka for a reason, and that was because Yutaka had always been a good person, and had never been unnecessarily spiteful or held malice to anyone of any kind. But Yuu had forgotten all of that. Yuu had thought him for the worst.  
  
Yutaka never wanted to intentionally harm him in the first place, didn’t he? He’d only been doing what he thought was best for Yuu, even though his actions had been misguided. Yutaka had only thought it best for Yuu to stay away from Kouyou, in his attempt to protect Yuu from what he thought was harm’s way. And above it all, Yutaka had been hopelessly in love with Yuu. He’d only wanted to live up to the man he had assumed Yuu would like. Love drove people to do crazy things; Yuu would know.  
  
If anyone were to blame for the madness that had taken place in Yutaka months before, Yuu would pin all the blame onto himself. Yuu had the power to turn the kindest man he’d ever known into a savage monster, and that was no small feat. Yutaka had lost himself completely in his attempts to reach Yuu’s ridiculously high expectations of his men, and even if everything had completely been out of Yuu’s control, perhaps Yutaka would have been better off if he’d never met Yuu and fallen in love with him.  
  
Yuu was so lucky to have been his friend.  
  
“Hey, Yutaka?” The first drop of tear was about to fall, but Yuu blinked it away. Emotion bubbling up inside of him, his voice came out cracked. “I really missed you.”  
  
Yutaka’s face contorted into a terribly beautiful, yet heartbreaking expression at his confession. He didn’t think he’d ever hear those words from Yuu’s lips, and he didn’t think the raven-haired would have harboured anything other than hatred and disgust for him after parting ways with him.  
  
“I,” Yutaka wanted to offer up a smile to the raven, but his heart had suddenly been assuaged so readily of all of the self-loathing that Yutaka had been keeping to himself for so long, and Yutaka couldn’t feel anything but the urge to burst into tears. His eyes slowly burning with tears, Yutaka wanted to voice out how grateful and relieved he was to know Yuu still thought of him after all he’d done to the raven-haired he’d so terribly loved.  
  
“Yuu, I…” Yutaka’s lower lip quivered, his hands beginning to tremble. The words wouldn’t leave him, and all of them were lost to the silence.  
  
But Yuu didn’t need to hear a single word to know what Yutaka felt.  
  
“I know,” Yuu took a step forward, a bright smile widening upon his lips. “I know, Yutaka.” Another step. One after another. Before long, Yuu had placed his books down and was standing right before Yutaka, his arms spread, beckoning for Yutaka to lean into him for a long-overdue hug.  
  
Yutaka immediately sunk into Yuu’s embrace, his arms wrapping longingly around the raven-haired. They needn’t say anything; they just teared, basking in the familiar warmth of the hug that had grown so foreign to them.  
  
The barrier between them instantly shattered – they saw no reason to hold back on the words they’d truly wanted to vocalize upon the minute they lay their eyes upon each other.  
  
“I never thought,” Yutaka only found the voice to speak a minute later, his throat choked up.  
  
_I never thought you’d want to see me again, Yuu_.  
  
“I’m glad to see you’re taking care of yourself,” Yuu whispered out, smiling amidst his salty tears. “Yutaka. It’s so great to see you again.”  
  
“It’s different, without you,” Yutaka murmured, shutting his eyes close, embracing Yuu tightly. “It really is. I would take everything back if I could. I’m sorry for everything I was. I’ll never be able to rewind time and change things, but if I could, I would.”  
  
“But we’re happy now,” Yuu said. “And these things make us stronger.”  
  
“We are,” Yutaka affirmed. “We really are. I’m so happy to hear… to hear he’s back. Taking care of you. I’d been so worried.”  
  
“I’ve been so happy,” Yuu assured. “I hope you have been, too.”  
  
“I have, I promise,” Yutaka pulled his head back from the hug. Flittering his eyes and averting Yuu’s gaze, he spoke as softly as he could. Yuu thought he looked almost shy. “Actually… I’ve recently met someone else. A girl. She’s studying medicine, too. She’s gentle. Like you.”  
  
Yuu’s smile grew wider at the news. “Really? That’s amazing to hear. I’m so happy for you, Yutaka.” Yuu really was. Yutaka had always been more reclusive, and much preferred life at home. Although Yuu was the same, and he’d enjoyed spending time in the apartment with Yutaka much more than staying out late with his other friends at shady pubs, the raven-haired was glad to know that Yutaka had managed to meet someone else in Yuu’s absence. A nice girl would definitely occupy Yutaka’s time and take away his heartache. Yuu wouldn’t have much to worry about anymore.  
  
And now that someone else was keeping a lookout for Yutaka for Yuu, Yuu knew his position had been replaced, but Yuu couldn’t be anymore thankful. Yutaka deserved someone who could love him as much as he would for them.  
  
“Things are fine now,” Yutaka managed a soft, convincing smile, one that held  _so_  much weight to it. “Things really turned out okay.”  
  
Yuu knew this glowing light at the end of their tunnel hadn’t been easy to attain. It was one that had been filled with harsh regret and things they couldn’t ever take back; but nothing else would compare to the lessons they’d learnt and the growth they’d achieved after everything they’d gone through. And they might have stepped out of the dark tunnel with burn marks left on their skin, but even the most scarring of wounds healed overtime.  
  
Frankly speaking? Yuu wouldn’t have had it any other way.  
  
After reveling in their hug for a little while longer, Yuu was the first to pull himself back when he remembered he had a schedule to stick to. Wiping happily at his eyes, the raven-haired ecstatically spoke to the brunet.  
  
“I can’t leave Taka waiting for too long,” Yuu said regrettably, gesturing to the entrance of the library. “He must have finished his class by now. I have to go meet him. But it’s been so nice to see you, Yutaka, it really is. We’ll have to do this again. You still have the same number, right?”  
  
“I do,” Yutaka smiled earnestly to him, watching as Yuu got up and straightened his clothes. “I’d love to see you again.”  
  
“I’d love to see you, too,” Yuu grinned, picking his books up from the table where he’d left them, readying himself to leave. “I’ll keep in contact, alright?”  
  
“Okay,” Yutaka breathed, watching Yuu turn his back on him. The raven was leaving, so soon, already. Then, rather impulsively, Yutaka found himself calling for the raven once more; just as a long, sharp thorny vine quickly made its first appearance, wrapping right around Yutaka’s brittle, worn-out heart. “Yuu!”  
  
The raven-haired spun on his heels, hair falling to the side as he returned his gaze to the brunet. “Yeah?”  
  
Yutaka never failed to lose his breath at the entrancing sight. “S… Send Kouyou my warm regards,” he managed to utter, before he soon forgot about everything else.  
  
“I will, Yutaka,” Yuu’s face lit up. “Thank you.”  
  
And then he left. Yutaka couldn’t have felt any happier to have rekindled his friendship with Yuu, even though he was truly happy for Yuu’s new life with Kouyou, he really was. But now all of these new knowledge made him even more certain of one small thing.  
  
Yutaka was never going to let Yuu know that the brunet never made it out of the tunnel with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)
> 
> No, this story hasn't ended yet (I am going to repeat myself with every update because all of you get so worried with every new chapter haha). These 2 are rather lengthy chapters that I hope you enjoyed :D
> 
> I don't like revealing what I plan in advance since I do love keeping you guys in suspense, but I think I'll tell you guys that this is the last we'll be seeing from Yutaka. That's it~ Hahahaha (look, I didn't make him die like I joked a few chapters ago!). I debated very long on the type of ending I'd give to him, but I chose realism over anything else. To give him a happy ending would purely be fanservice at this point and not practical in my eyes from the way this story has flowed. And for him to end like this after everything he's done is a very noble way to go. He'd rather have Yuu happy than sad, even if it's through a lie. Yuu's happiness is priority. Yuu's happiness is my priority lol. 
> 
> Yuu will never know.
> 
> ~~Not until Kouyou meets Yutaka again, that is. Because Kouyou will pick up on it, won't he? Everyone will pick up on it except Yuu himself.~~
> 
> I may or may not have been listening too much of [this](https://youtu.be/-B6VennbGOY?t=5s) to inspire such angst. XD 
> 
> Share with me your thoughts on everything :D Kou's parents, them discussing marriage, Yutaka... :) See you guys again soon!


	48. Chapter 48

Akira wasn’t sure why he even allowed Takanori into his office anymore.  
   
“Takanori.”  
   
“ _Takanori_.”  
   
“Takanori.”  
   
“No, Takanori. Please put that back.”  
   
“Takanori, I can see you slipping that box of clips into your jeans’ pocket. That’s part of my office supplies, honey. I need it.”  
   
“Taka sweetheart, you can’t just take empty photo frames off my desk like that.”  
   
“Taka  _baby_ , that art painting is for display. Please leave it against the wall. And how were you even planning to get it home without me noticing, anyway? You do know your bag’s too small to fit it, right?”  
   
Akira  _really_  appreciated the sentiment. Takanori liked to keep his lover company for a while whenever he brought over home-cooked lunches for him, seeing as how Akira was sometimes too busy with his work to even get a proper lunch; but whenever Takanori came over, Akira always found the effects more disastrous than helpful.  
   
One, it was always hard to concentrate on anything  _but_  Takanori’s gorgeous face and supple figure when the smaller man was around. As much self-control as Akira feigned to have, Takanori seemed to be the key to unlocking whatever restraint he had himself under.  
   
Two, Takanori touched anything and  _everything_. He was always curious, always hopping around and pocketing any interesting-looking thing that caught his fancy. Akira didn’t have much qualms of course, it wasn’t as if the older man couldn’t afford to replenish an occasional missing item, though it seriously astounded him just how many things Takanori could actually fit into his fashionable tote bag he brought with him everywhere.  
   
It came to a point, however, where the absence of the missing items became glaringly obvious, especially when Akira needed to use a calculator to work through his spreadsheets, and found the handy one that he’d always used gone. Akira could always get a new calculator from the office supplies room downstairs, definitely – but a calculator? A  _calculator_?! What the living hell did Takanori need a calculator for?! To calculate the total number of items he’d discreetly slipped out of Akira’s office?!  
   
He knew Takanori was just doing it for fun. Just for a thrill, at most. Takanori wasn’t  _that_ cheap. And perhaps he was even trying to gain Akira’s attention through his little antics to see till which point his boyfriend would snap. And, to be honest, Akira had many delightful novelties lying around his office, many of which he took pride in. He wasn’t much of a decorator himself, but he was well satisfied with the little trinkets he’d managed to place around his office. Takanori had scoffed at the sight of them at first, but then he’d pocket them, one by one.  
  
“ _Akiii_ …” Takanori’s voice snapped his boyfriend out from his thoughts. Akira sat numbly in his office chair, an elbow perched against his desk, his fingers massaging at his forehead. Takanori was currently hugging a mini-sized coffee maker to his chest, having somehow unplugged it from the wall. How did he  _even_ – nevermind.  
   
“What is it, honey?” Akira still found himself asking, though he could already guess the question coming. He watched on with a sigh as Takanori tilted his head to the side and looked to him with his lips trembling, his eyes dilating adorably in a wide-eyed, puppy look.  
   
“Aki, I don’t think you really use this coffee machine,” Takanori cooed. “Do  _youuu_ , baby?” He blinked his big eyes for added effect. Twice.  
   
“Takanori honey,” Akira cleared his throat, attempting to be firm with his lover. “That’s company property, in case you were thinking of removing it from its premises.”  
   
Takanori sniffed at his remark. Then, looking down to the coffee maker, he stroked at the top longingly with a yearning look in his eyes. “But Akiii, it’s  _so_ my color. I think it’ll really fit in with the whole décor of my kitchen. Remember how I just had my wooden cabinets done? It’d complete the whole look altogether.”  
   
“Taka,” Akira tried to repeat himself. “How about I take you out for some shopping this weekend? I’ll buy a brand new coffee maker for you.”  
   
Takanori hugged the coffee machine tighter to himself, then said rather stubbornly, “But I want this one.”  
   
Akira folded his arms, clucking at his tongue, looking to his lover rather disapprovingly. “Taka, you don’t really need a coffee maker, do you? You’re always spending time at my place in the morning, anyway, and I have a better one you can use there. Besides, I thought you already had one trusty one that you always use back at your own apartment.”  
   
“It spoilt,” Takanori scoffed, fingers caressing the coffee machine he was holding in his arms rather lovingly.  
   
“Did it really?” Akira frowned. He didn’t  _actually_ believe Takanori’s own coffee maker had spoilt, but if the younger man wanted another one, Akira wouldn’t refuse him. “Then I’ll get you a new one, love. Shopping this weekend, okay?”  
   
“But I want this one,” Takanori huffed, insistent on his decision. He lay his head upon the coffee maker, refusing to budge.  
   
Akira saw no way out of this. Takanori always got what he wanted when he was with Akira, since the older man couldn’t help but give in too easily when it came to his smaller lover. Who could possibly resist that cute pout on Takanori’s face, though? It was akin to a small dog. Or cat. Or something _equally_  cute.  
   
And Akira didn’t even really like animals.  
   
“Do you really like that one?” Akira resigned plainly to his defeat. It wasn’t as if he used the coffee maker much, anyway, since he always got his secretary to get coffee for him from that café across the street. Besides, Kouyou as a CEO had far better things to care about than notice that a coffee maker in Akira’s office had gone missing.  
   
“I really like it,” Takanori nodded his head, lifting it up, eyes beaming brightly now that he realized he would soon be getting his way with his lover.  
   
“OK then… take it,” Akira sighed, throwing a hand up into the air, knowing right from the start that it had been useless to contemplate he’d win when it came to arguing with Takanori.  
   
“Yay!” Takanori cheered happily at Akira’s relentance, then bundled up the wires of the coffee maker hurriedly and carried it altogether to the sofa, where his small tote bag lay. The amount of things Akira had seen Takanori fit inside of that bag so far  _completely_  blew the older man’s mind. Takanori could be hiding a live puppy inside and Akira would never know.  
   
“I don’t understand why you won’t let me buy you a new one,” Akira grunted, though he still watched his lover with a tender look on his face. He had long set his work aside to pay attention to his lover’s antics around his office, since his attempts on concentrating on his paperwork had been nothing but futile with Takanori around.  
   
“Just because you have money doesn’t mean you should spend it,” Takanori answered tactfully, packing the coffee maker up into his bag. “You’ve never even used this one, so I’m putting it to good use for you, idiot. Besides, you always take me out for shopping every other week, and I don’t want everything I own to have been bought from you.” Takanori casually ignored the fact that stealing items from Akira was not any better. “I fear you might get a heart attack one day from seeing your monthly credit card statements.”  
   
“I see, so you’re trying to save up money for me,” Akira laughed at his lover’s thoughtfulness. “You know I can afford it, though, right? Money doesn’t matter to me. It’s your happiness that does.”  
   
Takanori made a snort in response, though his heart secretly skipped a beat at how brutally honest but adoringly sentimental Akira always was when it came to Takanori. Akira was rarely ever shy when it came to outrightly doting on him, and although it sometimes made Takanori embarrassed – even if he didn’t let it show – Takanori truly appreciated how naturally gentlemenly Akira was.  
   
The older man always crumbled Takanori’s heart to bits and swept him right off his feet, and never had any qualms about doing so, either. Takanori absolutely loved it; this feeling of being held dearly and cherished so irrevocably. His previous partners had never been as mature, had never been as romantic, and had never been as giving and attentive to all of his needs. Akira had been the very first one to show Takanori how he deserved to be treated; to show Takanori how he deserved so much more.  
   
“Rich people always forget what it’s like not to be well off,” Takanori still shook his head, saying, teasing his lover with his words. “I’m just a poor college student, so I take what I can get.”  
   
“Hey, don’t be like that,” Akira said, seemingly worried at how easily Takanori was putting himself down. “If you ever need anything, you just let me know, okay? I’ll pay it off for you, no questions asked.”  
   
Takanori’s heart danced at how readily Akira had let those words slip. His lover would do  _anything_ to make Takanori happy, wouldn’t he? The smaller man turned his head up to him, a cute grin spreading wide upon his face. “Hmph. Since when did you become my sugar daddy?”  
   
Takanori didn’t even mean it as a joke. He had adored the lavish gifts and expensive attention that Akira initially bestowed upon him, but they’d been together for awhile now, and it’d come to a point where Takanori felt guilty each time Akira swiped his card to get something off Takanori’s wishlist for the younger man. Takanori had never been much of a spender, despite his love for fashion and shopping. It wasn’t as if Takanori was  _exceedingly_ poor – it was simply that Takanori wasn’t wealthy enough to be able to splurge on a whim, and he’d always learnt to take advantage of freebies and be frugal enough so he could save up enough money overtime to attain the material items he actually really wanted. ( _Yes,_ Takanori was the type to wrap up complimentary breadsticks with a napkin and fit at least ten of them into his bag before leaving the restaurant.)  
   
However, ever since he’d met Akira, the older man would buy for him anything he even showed moderate interest in, and Takanori knew all of these money hadn’t come by easy. Akira was practically a sugar daddy by now. Takanori’s very  _own_ hot, rich, and incredibly romantic sugar daddy.  
   
Akira raised an eyebrow, curious at the term being used. “Ah. Is that what they call it these days? It’s a thing, isn’t it?”  
   
“It’s all the rage, nowadays,” Takanori immediately burst into explanation, eager to share his knowledge. “I read about it recently. Apparently, it’s what plenty of attractive college students do to pay off their bills. I don’t think I’d fare too bad if I started being one myself. I’m irresistible, aren’t I?” He fluffed up his hair, smiling coyly to his lover. A slight flutter of his lashes, and Takanori was well on his way to mesmerizing the older brunet once more.  
   
Akira snapped out of his daze quickly, though, when he fully realized what his younger lover was saying.  
   
“ _Taka_ ,” Akira glowered to him, disapproving at the thought. “Like hell I’d let any other man have you just for nonsensical reasons like paying off your bills. I’m more than qualified as your lover to help you to do so.”  
   
“See? Sugar daddy,” Takanori giggled, rolling his eyes at the same time at the possessiveness Akira was showing. Akira was normally very calm, normally very well-composed, but occasionally Takanori would let slip a remark or two like  _that_ and it’d bring out the angry side of his older lover; which frankly, Takanori  _loved_. It was nice to know that Akira would do everything in his power not to lose Takanori to another man, since Akira was in his very own right to do so. He was vice-president of a company, after all, and he had enough influence and power to intimidate any other potential suitors from ever thinking about getting their hands on his lover.  _God_ , thinking about how all of these was making Takanori so hot. Akira was  _so_ overly qualified as a boyfriend.  
   
“You’re intelligent, handsome, and making bank. I guess I’d have no choice but to get you as a sugar daddy because I’m so,  _so_ horribly poor,” Takanori faked distress in his voice, glancing away from Akira sadly. “I’d have to listen to you… Do whatever you want… Make you happy so I can get my allowance from you every month.”  
   
Akira had wanted to protest at first; not liking the way Takanori was devaluing himself like this, but it soon occurred to him that his lover was doing...  _something else_. Takanori had started crossing his legs together, placing one leg over the other, squeezing his thighs shut uncharacteristically in a demure manner, his eyes frantically fluttering up and down as he spoke. Akira watched him in amusement, wondering  _exactly_ what his lover thought he was doing.  
   
“Such a pity that a beautiful specimen like you is putting up yourself for sale,” Akira decided to play along, a dry laugh leaving him as he spoke. He was  _always_ up for Takanori’s games, since his younger lover seemed to at least have one for him every other day they met. “I’m assuming you don’t come cheap, honey.”  
   
“Not really,” Takanori cheekily replied, getting up from his position on the sofa. He was almost dancing as he took steps forward to Akira’s desk, tipping on his toes and spinning himself around gracefully until he landed on both feet. Hopping his ass up onto the tabletop, Takanori paid no heed to the documents spread out beneath him – and it looked like Akira paid no mind, too.  
   
“I’m  _very_  expensive,” Takanori purred, crossing his legs together, raking a hand up desirably through his luscious hair. His flirtatious smile sent a dangerous pang to Akira’s heart, and Takanori went smug when he realized just how easily he’d bewitched his lover under his very fingertips. “And  _very_  in demand, so you better snap me up soon.” He extended a hand out to grab firmly at Akira’s tie, untucking it from within the older man’s suit, pulling the older man closer to him, forcing Akira to lean in; such that his face was only inches away from Takanori’s one.  
   
“I think you’ve gotten it wrong,” Akira’s voice remained collected, despite the lustful flame that had been kindled within his eyes. Looking as though he wasn’t one bit flustered, Akira calmly pushed Takanori’s grip off his tie, before tugging at his tie himself, straightening it and neatening it as he tucked it back into his suit. Takanori put on an offended look, surprised at how easily Akira was rebuffing his advances.  
   
In a single motion, the older man suddenly reached for Takanori’s jaw and grasped it with his fingers sturdily, forcing Takanori to gaze right down into his eyes.  
   
“You think you’re the one in power here,” Akira mused, the sides of his lips curving up into a smirk. Takanori fidgeted uneasily, not liking the direction in which this conversation was going.  
   
“I am!” Takanori asserted, defiance raging in his eyes. “ _You’re_ the one that wants a piece of this. Don’t lie.”  
   
“Ah,” Akira loosened his grip off Takanori’s jaw. “I see. You _think_  I’ll take you on as a sugar baby without a single doubt. Isn’t that right, my little naïve Takanori honey?”  
   
Takanori was instantly insulted, but he soon realized Akira had meant to do just that – provoke Takanori, and get himself some payback in return for all the other times Takanori had played games with him. So Takanori lifted his own head up high and crossed a leg over another once more, knowing he held all the power in his very own sensuality.  
   
“I don’t think. I  _know_ ,” Takanori spoke; a confident, and equally alluring smile returning to his pale pink lips. “You’re very demanding, mister Suzuki. Such a handsome bachelor like you shouldn’t be all alone like this…” the smaller man moved his hips in such a way that they were gyrating forward, his lips leaning dangerously close to Akira’s, his hot breath airing right against Akira’s stoic face.  
   
“I’d be willing to do  _anything_ you ask for, Suzuki, if only you would agree to pay off all my student debts for me…” And when Takanori whispered, it was crude, and  _so_ titillating; and his lips were anxiously biting against each other, his disheveled hair having fallen down long ago to frame the sides of his face sexily.  
   
_Oh_ , Akira felt deep hunger rouse up slowly inside of him at such an enticing sight. Takanori’s pretty pink quivering lips, as well as the helpless, tender look in those flittering dark eyes, was all too much for Akira to withstand at a single glance. The older man found himself vulnerable to his smaller lover’s weak voice, though Takanori’s body moved so wantonly it completely betrayed the pure innocent front Takanori put on for show.  _Fuck_. Akira might really have to give in sooner than he thought after all. His pants had begun growing tight, and they’d only grow to be tighter from hereon.  
   
“I’ll give you everything you want,” Akira breathed out almost immediately, his voice slightly faltering as he immersed himself in those magnetic dark eyes of Takanori’s. “If you’ll treat me good and well, baby.”  
   
Takanori looked satisfied with his answer, and he leaned in further so that his plush lips were tracing tantalizingly against Akira’s. “You know I live just to please you, handsome,” Takanori murmured, his lips meeting Akira’s ones in a soft kiss. “You know I’ll treat you like a king, as a dutiful courtesan would to his majesty, as a servant bound to his lordship.”  
   
“You’d be nothing less than a queen,” Akira found himself easing his eyes shut, relaxing into Takanori’s gentle kisses, the older man’s hands raising up to cup affectionately at the sides of Takanori’s face as they both indulged in sweet, short kisses with every word they spoke. “I’d make you my queen. You’d seduce me and take over my kingdom in less than a day, with such a pretty face and body.”  
   
“Oh, my  _highness_ ,” Takanori teased, going along with the imagery, and then he was crawling off the edge of the desk and throwing himself right into Akira’s lap, his knees rubbing intentionally against his lover’s groin, noting in delight how big Akira already had grown.  
   
“You flatter me. You really are just a lonely man, aren’t you,” Takanori’s hands slid up and down Akira’s chest, caressing at his hard pecs through his white buttoned-up shirt, groping Akira’s delicious muscles with his small, slender fingers. “You just want someone who you can bring to bed at night, with a nice, plump ass that’s tight enough for you to  _fuck_. You just want to feel me squirming underneath you, my thighs squeezing around your big cock. You just want to cum inside of me, on me, and watch me choke on your cum, tears in my eyes from how good it feels to be treated like a  _slut_ …”  
   
“Takanori,” Akira’s eyes were now muddled with nothing but absolute sexual desire, his sexual appetite having been awaken quickly with Takanori’s dirty talk. Akira was so fucking horny he could feel his  _very_ alive cock straining against his pants, confines tight and uncomfortable, his tip wet with pre-cum, staining a good portion of his black pants from inside already. Akira’s hands trailed down Takanori’s back to grab a full hold of Takanori’s well-rounded buxom, fondling his lover’s ass cheeks erotically in his grip.  
   
“I see you’ve got a problem,” Takanori snickered, grinning once he knew he’d won the game he started with Akira. Akira didn’t even bother feeling shame; he growled at Takanori, urging his lover to do  _something_ to solve his very evident problem, and soon Takanori was slipping off his lap and removing himself to the floor, getting onto his knees and keeping his head level with Akira’s crotch.  
   
A shiver crept up Akira’s spine as Takanori’s hands stroked along his thighs, unzipping the front of his pants and taking his hard cock firmly into his hands. Takanori smugly eyed Akira’s member, its tip flushed a vibrant red; and then he began to stroke, watching on with a smile at every gasp that escaped Akira’s lips. Raising his hips a little, Akira sucked in a breath of contentment as his hands gripped the sides of his office chair tightly, thighs erratically twitching as his lover’s palm slid up and down around his cock, slowly forming a sweet rhythm. Akira was never really vocal, unlike his partner, and so the low pants and grunts that leave his mouth were all that filled the room, his eyelids falling to a close every now and then, taking in the pleasurable feeling of his lover’s warm touch wrapped around his sensitive erection.  
   
“ _Oh_ , Taka…” Akira’s eyes slightly opened when he felt a hot, wet, open mouth slowly enclose around his thick cock. Takanori was so skilled when it came to giving Akira head he daren’t even ask where the smaller one had gotten his skills from – not that Akira was complaining. Takanori began fisting the base while licking and sucking at the tip, using a lot of tongue like how Akira liked, and soon Akira’s quiet, reserved moans quickly escalated into feral groans, his hands wildly reaching down into Takanori’s hair, clawing and pulling everywhere at his strands.  
   
“ _Fuck_ , Taka…”  
   
Then came the knock on Akira’s office door, which Akira hadn’t even taken notice of until Takanori nudged at Akira’s foot himself, his mouth still fervently sucking upon Akira’s dick. There was a wicked glint in Takanori’s eye, and Akira didn’t like the sight of that very much.  
   
“Hey, Akira?” Came a voice from outside Akira’s office, accompanied by a couple of urgent knocks against his door. Akira snapped out of his pleasured daze and registered the voice to be Kouyou’s, much to his grim displeasure at being interrupted.  
   
“What is it? I’m busy,” Akira answered back, slightly agitated, cursing as Takanori took more of him into his tight mouth. Akira waited impatiently for an answer from his boss, expecting Kouyou to drop him a note or two before leaving him alone, but what he  _hadn’t_ expected was Kouyou pulling the door right open and entering his office himself.  
   
_Fuck_. In a flurry of panic, Akira was quickly looking down to Takanori’s kneeling stature on the ground, wondering if Kouyou would be able to see him, but noted with relief that his rather large desk would obscure Takanori from view – for now. Takanori looked up to him with a wide innocent look, and Akira narrowed his eyes to him, warning him not to do anything in the meantime to gain Kouyou’s attention.  
   
Seriously, though, Akira usually didn’t have any problems with Kouyou entering his office as he pleased, but this was an extremely inappropriate time for Kouyou to be seeing himself into the office right now, and – for god’s sake – what did a man have to do around here to be able to cum?!  
   
“Afternoon! I signed the documents you needed me to,” Kouyou cheerfully said, walking over to him while holding a stack of documents with his left arm. Akira forced himself to smile up to the blond, trying to act as normal as possible, gesturing for the blond CEO to place it down before him onto his desk.  
   
“I thought you would have gotten Chiaki to bring them down to me instead,” Akira mumbled, trying not to look too overly annoyed at Kouyou’s presence. “Or did you have anything else to discuss with me?”  
   
Wait, why did Akira even bring that up? What if Kouyou truly did and Akira had just opened up a whole new area of conversation with him?  
   
“Anyway, I’m busy settling paperwork, so if there’s anything, we’ll talk later.”  
   
The wide smile on Kouyou’s face quickly waned at the sound of Akira’s question, and the blond suddenly turned rather nervous-looking. Placing the stack of documents down, Kouyou anxiously tugged at the ends of his long sleeves, rolling them up his arms slightly, unintentionally showing off his hunky arms. “Actually, Akira… I was wondering if I could talk to you about something. I’ve been thinking about it the entire morning, and I thought it’d be good if I could get your thoughts on it.”  
   
Akira didn’t have the heart to turn Kouyou away – the blond wore a troubled expression on his face, and it must have been something important enough to warrant such seriousness and for the blond to have thought about it the entire morning. Judging by the looks of it, Kouyou was probably deliberating over a matter concerning Yuu, since Kouyou only ever grew so distressed when it came to his raven-haired lover. And given under any other circumstance, Akira would have immediately stood up of his own initiative and brought Kouyou out for coffee, agreeing to hear him out and offer him some advice of his own.  
   
But right now Takanori was still kneeling on his office floor. In front of him. With his hard cock in his mouth. And his smaller lover was beginning to grow restless at the mention of Kouyou possibly staying in the room any longer, his face heatedly glaring up to Akira with a thousand curse words evidently being narrated through his eyes.  
   
“Um, Kouyou… Now’s not such a good time,” Akira eventually resolved to listen to his lover. If Kouyou had something important to confide into him, it probably would be best if Takanori evacuated the premises first. It wouldn’t be right if Takanori listened in on as well – though Akira didn’t think Takanori would have minded that part,  _had_ Takanori not been kneeling and in the middle of giving Akira a blowjob.  
   
“It’ll be quick, I promise,” Kouyou frowned, mildly puzzled at Akira’s rejection to hear him out. His best friend was usually much more accommodating than this. “It’s just… You remember how I told you about what happened last year? My parents came over, kind of pressured Yuu into marriage, Yuu and I almost fought about when we’d get married, yadda yadda…”  
   
Akira stifled back a laugh when he looked down into Takanori’s eyes and saw his irritance spelled out so clearly –  _oh my GOD HE’S STAYING_  –  and it must have been Takanori’s breaking point, when he realized Kouyou had no plans of leaving them alone at all; for Takanori began to suck dutifully against Akira’s cock once more, deciding that if Kouyou wasn’t going to go, Takanori was going to  _make_ him go.  
   
Akira froze when he realized what Takanori had begun doing, but he was completely helpless when Takanori’s head began bobbing in between his thighs at a tantalizing pace, hardening his cock again within the confines of his mouth.  
   
“ _Ohh…_ Fuck,” Akira cursed quietly to himself when he felt Takanori change his angles, sucking at the base and even the balls. Biting down against his lower lip, Akira had to pace his breaths in order not to let his groans slip out, though it was proving rather hard to do so when Takanori was giving head so vicious he was determined to reduce Akira into a trembling mess.  
   
“What’s wrong?” Kouyou asked, forehead creasing up. “You don’t remember that at all? I thought I told you about the marriage thing.”  
   
Takanori made a loud slurp, prompting Akira to answer loudly and immediately in order to cover up the noise. “You did!”  
   
“Right… I did,” Kouyou turned his head away from the vice-president, sighing as he started to pace back and forth before the desk as he spoke. “Well, it’s been a while since then. It’s been nice, you know? We’ve just celebrated Yuu’s 22nd birthday last weekend – you would know, you and Taka were there – and everything’s been so…  _so_ nice. We haven’t been talking much about marriage anymore, but when I do bring it up, Yuu always remains insistent that he wants to marry me within a year or two. He says we have to answer up to our parents, you know. And well, I’ve been thinking about it a lot, and I’ve decided…”  
   
“Jesus Christ,” Akira growled, when he felt Takanori take in his whole length from the tip to the balls like the fucking cock-sucking whore he was. Akira was listening, he really was, but it was  _so_ hard to concentrate on Kouyou’s predicament when Takanori was doing  _so_ many things with his mouth at once. Akira wanted nothing more than to grab at Takanori’s hair and fuck the smaller man’s mouth non-stop against his cock, and give his smaller lover a taste of his own medicine and let him learn a lesson for acting like such a slut in the presence of his best friend.  
   
Gazing down to Takanori, Akira felt his cock twitch violently at the sight of how dirty and vulgar his kneeling lover looked. Takanori had his eyes shut and his features contorted into an obedient expression, looking nothing but docile and lamblike as he did his best to pleasure his older lover.  
   
“Is there anything wrong?” Kouyou glanced back to Akira, looking uneasy now that he saw how aggravated Akira was reacting. Akira was grateful Kouyou seemed to be too caught up in his own worries that he hadn’t noticed Akira was currently getting head from under the table. An  _extremely_ fantastic blowjob, might Akira add. “You don’t think marriage is a good idea? I mean, I understand your concerns, but I thought you’d understand my position too, you know, since you’re facing the same thing with Takanori and all that…”  
   
“I–  _mmf_ ,” Akira had to swallow down the loud moan that was coming up his throat. “Sorry, I meant… I don’t understand your question. What exactly are you planning for now?” He was  _so_ punishing Takanori after this.  
   
“Ah,” Kouyou came across as unusually shy. “Of course, I’m not talking about proposing  _immediately_ , but I’ve been thinking of looking at rings, you know, choosing one that Yuu might like. I’ve thought of hinting to Yuu to choose one for himself, but that would ultimately ruin the surprise. And I’ve always liked surprising Yuu, because he looks so happy when I do it, so I’m stuck. I know Yuu is fond of that Taujan jewelry brand, and I really want to get something he’d really like…”  
   
Wait. Kouyou’s looking for an engagement ring for Yuu?  
   
Akira widened his eyes once he’d properly digested what Kouyou had said. Takanori must have shared the same sentiments, for his tongue had paused against Akira’s dick, shocked at the words that had just left Kouyou’s lips. Now  _this_ was juicy material Takanori was willing to sit in on and suck dick for.  
   
“You’re going to propose?” Akira asked, his face full of surprise. He hadn’t expected such news from his best friend at all.  
   
“Not immediately,” Kouyou said, his cheeks flushed. “In the upcoming months, maybe. I just want to prepare myself, and have a ring ready, just in case. I haven’t even thought about how I’m going to do it yet. But I feel like Yuu and I are both ready, now, and much more settled in on this decision than before. So it’s beginning to feel right. It’s just… I’m not sure how I’m going to go about choosing a ring. I really want Yuu to love it. I want it to be something he’ll want to wear forever.”  
   
“Kouyou, you know Yuu’s not superficial. He’ll love any ring you give him,” Akira instantly attested, forgetting temporarily that he had a dick in his lover’s mouth. “He’d be so happy to know you’re worrying so much about this small matter alone.”  
   
“You think so?” A smile spread slightly upon Kouyou’s lips. “Still, I’m not going to just get him  _any_ ring. I have the financial means and connections to get him something gorgeous and one of a kind, and I really want to give him something befitting of a CEO’s wife. I just am so lost when it comes to the jewelry aspect, since Yuu does have some interest in it, but I’ve never been good with choosing designs…”  
   
Takanori hastily nudged at Akira’s leg, pulling at the older man’s pants to get his lover’s attention. Akira looked down to him in bewilderment, but understood once Takanori gestured to himself, signaling for Akira to mention his name.  
   
“What about Takanori?” Akira offered, and Kouyou’s face quickly brightened up at such an idea. “Takanori would know. They hang out 24/7, and I’m sure if Takanori could work with you to come up with a design that Yuu would like. Besides, Takanori could get Yuu’s opinion on what kind of rings he’d like discreetly in conversations. Yuu wouldn’t suspect a thing at all.”  
   
“I don’t know why I never thought about that,” Kouyou laughed, shaking his head at how much he’d been worrying over all of this. “It’s a brilliant idea. I’ll ring Takanori up later. Ah, now I feel so much better about this entire thing. I’ve been thinking so much about how perfect all of these has to go, you know, I really want to give Yuu nothing but only the best.”  
   
Takanori appeared pleased with his answer, liking how devoted the CEO was to his best friend.  
   
“I understand how you feel,” Akira said, smiling genuinely up to the blond this time. “You’ll do great, don’t worry. It’s obvious by this point that you and Yuu are made for each other. And if you ever need help proposing to Yuu, just let me know, alright? Takanori and I would be more than happy to help you execute it out.”  
   
“Thanks, man,” Kouyou grinned, nodding. “Well, then I’ll better get going. I still have work to clear before I can leave for my dinner plans with Yuu at seven. Speaking of dinner, we should get dinner all together again, yeah? With Takanori and Yuu. It’s always nice to hang out together.”  
   
“Definitely, I’ll make arrangements with Taka, ” Akira agreed, relieved that the entire conversation has gone on without a single hitch. The CEO hadn’t even noticed Takanori had been under his desk all along, thankfully; Akira didn’t want Kouyou to require any therapy.  
   
The blond was almost out the door when he strode past the sofa, and his eyes caught sight of Takanori’s small tote bag, prompting Kouyou to turn his head back to Akira curiously.  
   
“Ah, Takanori’s around the office?”  
   
_Fuck_. Akira had forgotten all about Takanori’s tote bag and his goddamn stolen coffee maker.  
   
“He came to visit earlier,” Akira tried to answer as nonchalantly as he could.  
   
“Is he outside? I’ll have to say hi,” Kouyou asked, though wariness was evident in his eyes. “You didn’t make a mention of him at all earlier.”  
   
“He went to the washroom,” Akira shrugged, eyes gazing down to his smaller lover who was giggling silently to himself underneath his desk. Akira eyed him with a threatening look, warning him to stay silent.  
   
“Akira,” Kouyou’s voice was cold this time.  
   
As Akira turned his attention back to Kouyou, he realized inexplicable horror had emerged onto Kouyou’s face, just as quickly as the dreadful realization had dawned finally down onto the blond. _Great_. It wasn’t as if Kouyou was dumb; he had become CEO for a reason. There weren’t many places Takanori could possibly hide or go to around this office, and it was too easy to deduce the reason for Akira’s strange reactions and grunts earlier to Takanori’s presence underneath the table.  
   
Kouyou sounded resigned, his face pale. “Takanori’s under the desk, isn’t he.”  
   
When a triumphant giggle escaped loudly from Takanori underneath, Akira didn’t even bother to cover either of them up. It was just their luck; they had been  _so_ close to not getting found out.  
   
“In our defense…”  
   
“Are you fucking kidding me.” Kouyou eased his eyes close, a look of dismay on his face. “ _Oh my god_. Don’t even fucking tell me what Takanori is doing down there, Akira. Don’t you dare.”  
   
“Hey,” Akira snorted. “I’m pretty sure you and your beau have done far worse.”  
   
“I’m not going to deny that we’ve done similar things in my office,” Kouyou side-eyed him. “But I was just standing in front of your desk…  _Oh_  Jesus Christ.”  
   
“In  _my_ defense, I had warned Takanori not to do anything,” Akira muttered under his breath.  
   
“You know I’m not going to let you two live this down, right?” Kouyou raised an eyebrow as he spoke.  
   
“Oh,  _please_. We have far more blackmail material on you and Yuu than you ever will have on us.”  
   
“I see, we’re warring now? Whatever it is, since Takanori has heard everything, that will spare me the trouble to ring him. Let Takanori know I’ll see him in my office whenever you two are…  _done_  with your nasty business.”  
   
“Alright, Virgin Mary.”  
   
“Shut the fuck up, Akira.”  
   
The moment the office door closed behind Kouyou, Akira quickly pulled Takanori away from his still-hard cock and tugged him up onto his lap to kiss him. They shared many open-mouthed, messy kisses, trails of saliva falling off their lips; as Takanori slung his arms around Akira’s neck, and Akira’s hands ran desperately up through Takanori’s hair. The sounds of their wet tongues clashing and aggressively kissing echo throughout the room, and in the next moment Takanori was eagerly loosening Akira’s tie, fingers unbuttoning his shirt.  
   
“You’re so naughty, sucking me off in front of Kouyou like that,” Akira whispered up into Takanori’s ear, his hands hurriedly tugging Takanori’s pants off at the same time.  
   
“I’ve always been an exhibitionist,” Takanori smiled, dissolving quickly into soft, delighted moans as he tilted his head to the side and yielded his neck to Akira, allowing him to decorate his skin with hickeys and harsh kisses.  
   
“You know you’re paying for that, right?” Akira murmured as he nipped at Takanori’s neck, making him gasp hotly, and in turn made Takanori roll his hips teasingly and rub their crotches and throbbing lengths against each other. “I’m not going to let you get away with that.”  
   
“Of course you won’t,” Takanori breathed out, eyes lidded with misty heat, and for the first time in his life he tried calling Akira a name that subsequently sent heat coiling up in his stomach like never before.  
   
“Of course I deserve getting punished for that,  _Daddy_.”


	49. Official End

“I want to plan a surprise party for Kouyou’s 36th birthday.”  
   
Yuu’s raven hair had been scrunched up messily into a cute, small ponytail behind him, leaving long wispy strands falling over his face. Ever since he’d begun leaving his hair long – Kouyou seemed to like Yuu’s hair kept long, as much as he denied it with his  _I’d love you no matter the length of hair_ – Yuu had taken to tying his hair up into ponytails regularly now, since Kouyou would always affectionately term the sight adorable. And Yuu always wanted to make Kouyou happy.  
   
So here Yuu was, in a nice, homely café, one that was situated not too far from Kouyou’s place, sitting right opposite Takanori and Akira who were listening to him intently with straight faces, having been invited out by the raven-haired on a ‘secret mission’. He’d sent them both text messages that read  _PS: DO NOT TELL KOUYOU I’M MEETING YOU!!! AT ALL COSTS!!!_ at the end and that had gotten his point fairly across.  
   
So, when Yuu sat them both down with a determined look in his eye and told them of his plans to throw a surprise party for Kouyou’s birthday in a month’s time, Akira wasn’t too shocked to hear the news. He was calm, even. Takanori, on the other hand, was ecstatic and more than eager to lend a helping hand.  
   
“That’s  _so_ exciting!” Takanori chirped, nudging his stoic lover next to him to show some sort of excitement. Akira was strangely silent, his lips pursing into a frown, deep in thought.  
   
“Right?! It’s the first time I’m celebrating Kouyou’s birthday for him, and I really want to make it special. You guys helped Kouyou with my birthday, so I thought it’d be nice to throw a party for him, too.” Yuu’s eyes twinkled dreamily. “We could do so many things! Do you guys have any suggestions?”  
   
“I think it’s a bad idea,” Akira was quick to dampen the mood. “I’m not sure if Kouyou would like that.”  
   
“Why wouldn’t Kouyou like what?” Takanori instantly questioned, not liking Akira’s sudden pessimism. “What’s wrong with throwing him a party?”  
   
“Yeah, what’s wrong?” Yuu folded his arms, indignance flaming up in his eyes.  
   
“Well, he surprised you on your birthday because he knows you’re into romantic surprises,” Akira began. “But different strokes for different folks, see. Kouyou doesn’t like people making a big deal out of his birthday. He’s probably hoping you’ll forget about it, actually, knowing him. Or perhaps he’d prefer just spending the night with you in bed, or something of the likes of it.”  
   
Yuu’s face went glum. “I kind of already know Kouyou’s not the type for flashy celebrations, but I didn’t want to just cook him a meal and call it a day. I mean, I do that for him  _everyday_! Plus, it’d be nice to have everyone together to celebrate his birthday. I want Kouyou to feel loved!”  
   
“I agree with Yuu,” Takanori wrinkled his nose up, gazing stubbornly to his lover. “I think it’d be nice to throw Kouyou a party.  _Everyone_ likes parties. Kouyou loves Yuu so much, he would appreciate the party even more knowing that Yuu did it all for him.”  
   
“If you put it that way…” Akira sighed, throwing his hands up in defeat. “You’re his lover, after all, Yuu. Do whatever you think will make him happy.”  
   
Yuu frowned, persistent on his idea. “But I really think a party would be nice for him! He works so hard everyday, and it’d be nice to have everyone who loves him in the same place. I’d call his parents, and mine too, to see if they can spare some time and come down to celebrate his birthday for him. I’d even invite Chiaki, his secretary, as well as whoever else he’s on good terms with at the office. I’ll trust you to make a list, Akira?”  
   
Akira nodded his head, reaching for his mug of coffee and taking two small sips from it. “I’ll do it. Just give me a time and place and I’ll make sure they’re there.”  
   
“‘Make sure’?” Takanori laughed outwardly at the term. “Oi, don’t tell me my boyfriend’s an assassin in disguise. Are you going to put a gun to their heads and kill them if they don’t come?”  
   
“You forget your boyfriend’s the vice-president of a company,” Akira teased, an arm circling around Takanori’s waist suggestively. “I have intimidating power, as hard as that is to believe.”  
   
“Oh, so my boyfriend thinks he’s very powerful,  _huh_ ,” Takanori flirted, his eyes smiling up felinely to the older man. “Your dangerousness makes you look  _so_  hot to me right now.”  
   
“Guys, I still exist,” Yuu scowled to the both of them, not liking being a witness to their public displays of affection. “And I thought we were talking about Kouyou’s birthday party.”  
   
“We are! So what are you planning? A ton of balloons, banners and confetti?” Takanori quickly turned his attention back to his best friend. “I’ll come over to your place tomorrow after class and get my sketchbook so I can make a layout of Kouyou’s penthouse and how the decorations will be like.”  
   
“I’m keen on the balloons idea, actually,” Yuu giggled, envisioning a colorful mess in his head already. “We have to use darker and more mature colors, of course. Like white, gold and dark blue. I think Kouyou would kill me if I made it too kiddy.”  
   
“No shit, Kouyou’s turning thirty-six,” Akira grunted, shaking his head at how animated these younglings acted about parties. “But that color scheme sounds great. I know of a supplier that sells nice party decorations that I can hook you up with. We buy from them regularly for office functions.”  
   
Yuu nodded. “Kouyou’s place is  _huge_ , so I’m also thinking of a buffet set-up and getting some food caterers. I’ll definitely bake the cake myself, but I might only be able to whip up one or two dishes for the buffet. It’d be too easy for Kouyou to find out if I prepared too much food beforehand.”  
   
“Ooh! Buffet! I can also help with the baking, by the way,” Takanori chipped in. “You’d have too much to do on the day itself. Oh, and we need to start deciding on the menu ASAP. We’d get all of Kouyou’s favourite food. Akira, your cue.”  
   
“I’ll make a list for that, too,” Akira complied. “You can count on me.”  
   
“My boyfriend’s the beesssttt,” Takanori snuggled his head up against Akira’s arm. “Just count on us, Yuu! We’ll make it Kouyou’s best birthday ever.”  
   
“I sure hope it will be,” Yuu smiled gratefully up to the pair, before getting right back down to business. “Alright, so let’s lay out the battle plan now. So, today we’re going to have to decide on this and  _that_ …”  
   
For an entire month, Yuu worked tirelessly on the  _perfect_ surprise birthday party, running around and making endless calls to prepare for food, decoration, and securing the date on his guests’ calendar, knowing he couldn’t disappoint Kouyou with any less. Kouyou was always the one that prepared romantic surprises for him, but this time Yuu would be the one taking charge.  
   
This time, Yuu would be the one throwing Kouyou right off-guard and giving him the best birthday he would ever have. Yuu wanted to make him the  _happiest_  boyfriend in the world.  
   
~  
   
Kouyou was never the type to actively publicize his birthday – he’d only mentioned it once or twice in passing when Yuu asked a long while ago – and so, even up till the very night before the big day itself, there was no mention of it at all. Not even from Yuu, who was feigning he’d forgotten about Kouyou’s birthday all these while. Yuu was filled with immense guilt for putting on such an oblivious and uncaring front, but he wanted the surprise to be all the more shocking when Kouyou realized Yuu had been planning such a big-scale party behind his back for a month now. Yuu was determined to see Kouyou’s face light up in pure happiness when he returned home from work and saw  _all_  the efforts and lengths Yuu had gone to in a bid to surprise him. Kouyou would scoop Yuu up into his arms and pepper him with kisses until Yuu had to push at his face to get him to stop, Yuu was sure.  
   
On the very night before Kouyou’s birthday, Yuu crawled into bed with Kouyou, who had long settled down against his pillows and was ready to drift off to sleep. The blond still waited for Yuu to sink into his arms, though, since he had gotten so used to sleeping with his arms wrapped around Yuu. It’d become their standard sleeping position, and he never slept well without holding Yuu close to him. Yuu was his source of comfort, and the only reason Kouyou came home every night without fail. Yuu loved just how much Kouyou adored him, for he felt the exact same way. He couldn’t sleep well without nestling up into Kouyou’s protective embrace either, and every night Yuu thought himself to be blessed to have found his soulmate so early in his life.  
   
“Tired today?” Yuu murmured, slipping under the covers and raising his head up to gaze into Kouyou’s eyes. Kouyou’s eyes were heavily lidded with exhaustion and almost closing, and he only nodded stiffly as Yuu’s hands reached up to cup at the sides of Kouyou’s face, stroking him gently.  
   
“Lots of meetings today,” Kouyou mumbled, leaning into Yuu’s touch, a soft smile curling up on his face. “But I’m happy to come home to you.”  
   
“Poor thing,” Yuu whispered, pecking a quick kiss upon the tip of Kouyou’s nose. “You’ll come home early tomorrow for dinner, right? I’ll cook something nice for you.”  
   
“Mmm,” Kouyou agreed, smile widening at Yuu’s words. “I’ll try to come home early to spend more time with you tomorrow, since I came home late today.”  
   
Kouyou didn’t appear to suspect a thing at all; and for some reason, didn’t even seem to realize his birthday was tomorrow. Yuu felt slightly vexed, yet relieved at the same time – it was great that Kouyou had forgotten all things pertaining to his birthday, but Yuu would have liked it if Kouyou showed  _some_ sort of anxiousness as to whether Yuu had truly forgotten his birthday or not. But perhaps Kouyou had always been so forgetful of himself; he only ever bothered remembering important details of his loved ones’, and neglected everything else about himself. Kouyou was so selfless it was infuriating sometimes.  
   
And that was why Yuu was here to take care of him, and make sure Kouyou was loved for in his own right.  
   
“I love you,” Yuu smiled up to the older man, his warm cheeks pressing up right against Kouyou’s. “You’re dead tired. Go to sleep, my handsome prince.”  
   
Kouyou’s eyelids fluttered shut peacefully, murmuring his last few words out before he finally succumbed to exhaustion.  
   
“Love you too, my little flower princess.”  
   
~  
   
Yuu woke up the same time Kouyou did, at seven in the morning, but he pretended to be asleep the entire morning until Kouyou left and he had heard the front door click shut. He’d kept his eyes close – rather unwillingly – as Kouyou brushed at the side of his hair and kissed him goodbye atop the forehead, murmuring an  _I love you babydoll, see you later_ even if he’d thought Yuu wasn’t conscious yet. It was only once after Yuu had made sure Kouyou left his apartment grounds for real, that the raven-haired got up from bed and stretched his arms wide open, ready to begin the big day.  
   
Takanori came over in less than an hour, complete with a ton of baking supplies they’d prepared for this day way in advance. They had till evening to bake the perfect cake, and they weren’t going to waste any minute of it. Yuu would be getting the party decorations delivered to Kouyou’s place in two hours’ time, and he’d employed helpers to put them up at the same time, so Yuu would be busy running around the apartment the entire day, in and out of the kitchen, supervising every aspect of the party preparations and making sure everything was flowing smoothly just like he had planned.  
   
Yuu had opted for white, gold and dark blue colors as the party’s theme as planned, going for the classy and sleek route, knowing it fit Kouyou’s personality best. He’d arranged for the golden banners to spell out Kouyou’s name, wishing him a happy 36th birthday, and he’d arranged for bouquets of rose red and satiny white roses to complement the place, placing them at various corners of the room. Yuu had also set up a dark blue backdrop in the corner of Kouyou’s large living room, with chandelier lights conveniently positioned above in such a way that it would be an ideal spot for them to take selfies and photographs at. Even the room had been spray-scented with a sweet, fragrant smell, one that was similar to Yuu’s own perfume; for Yuu had wanted Kouyou to step into a place akin to heaven when he finally returned home.  
   
The food caterers only came over mid-afternoon, after most of the penthouse had been decorated and Yuu and Takanori’s cake was almost ready to be taken out of the oven. Yuu had ordered for an assortment of wine and champagne, a fine selection of freshly baked pastries for dessert, as well as all of Kouyou’s favourite dishes whipped up only by first-rate chefs in town (Akira’s list had been extremely helpful). All the food were then nicely set up onto a long rectangular glass table, with dark blue sheets draped over it, positioned to the furthermost side of Kouyou’s living room.  
   
By evening time, around six o’clock, an hour before Kouyou usually returned home, the majority of the guests had arrived, all dressed in clothes that were either white, gold, or dark blue. Kouyou’s parents, as well as Yuu’s, had made time to come down to their place to celebrate Kouyou’s birthday, which was something Yuu was extremely grateful about. Most of Kouyou’s colleagues that the blond was on good terms with had arrived as well, since Kouyou didn’t seem to have been keeping too tight an eye on them in the office today.  _Even_ Akira managed to sneak out of work without Kouyou noticing, and had arrived early to the party, helping Yuu with some of the party preparations.  
   
Akira had assured Yuu that Kouyou had no clue as to whatever was going on at all, for he appeared to  _truly_ have forgotten about his own birthday, at least until Kouyou was receiving emails from all over the office congratulating him on hitting another milestone. Kouyou hadn’t come across affected at all by the birthday wishes, though, and only thanked them all quietly in return, not wishing to make a big deal out of it. Yuu was further delighted by the news, since it only ascertained that Kouyou would definitely be shocked once he came home to a surprise birthday party. And Yuu couldn’t wait to see the look on Kouyou’s face once it happened. Kouyou would be so,  _so_ happy.  
   
Everything – as far as decorations, cake and guests were concerned – were going his way so far. Now all Yuu needed was the birthday boy to arrive, and everything would finally fall into place, and the party that Yuu had been stressing himself over so much for a month now could finally get started.  
   
By seven o’clock, Yuu had switched off all the lights in the apartment and hushed for his guests to keep quiet, signaling that Kouyou would be home anytime soon now. Yuu was the only one to slip out of the penthouse, closing the door behind him, wanting to be the first one to greet Kouyou home before anyone else.  
   
And by seven o’ five, the lift to Kouyou’s penthouse finally slid open. Yuu waited with bated breath as the love of his life stepped out of the elevator, holding his usual black briefcase in his hand. Attired in his work suit and looking as dashing as ever, his blond-haired lover’s lips widened up into a crisp smile, eyes routinely gleaming happily at the sight of his raven-haired flower.  
   
Yuu was  _so_ excited. Kouyou was going to be so surprised!  
   
“Hello there,” Yuu giggled, just as Kouyou walked right up to him, the blond’s head leaning in to kiss Yuu sweetly upon his soft lips. Yuu allowed his eyes to fly shut as he reveled in the kiss, moaning gently into Kouyou’s mouth as he did so.  
   
“Standing outside to welcome me home?” Kouyou questioned when he pulled away from the kiss, cocking an eyebrow up to Yuu.  
   
“My sweet princess, you can’t ever hide anything from me. Why didn’t you tell me my parents had come over without notice again?”  
   
Wait.  
   
Yuu’s eyes widened in shock, alarmed that Kouyou had already found out about his parents’ arrival. “W…What?”  
   
“I saw their car in the basement, babe,” Kouyou sighed. Oh,  _right,_ Yuu thought as he cursed inwardly to himself. Kouyou  _would_ recognize his parents’ car out of all the others. “You should have rung me up and told me about it. I’d have returned home as soon as I could so you wouldn’t have to entertain them alone.”  
   
“Oh, um…” Yuu found himself trying to come up with an excuse to continue the lie. Kouyou only thought they were visiting – he still hadn’t known of a surprise party yet. “Yeah, they’d come over for some reason. Not sure what…”  
   
Was Yuu being way too obvious?  
   
“ _Ugh_ ,” Kouyou rolled his eyes irately in response. “I know what. It’s my birthday today, unfortunately. They’re probably here to surprise me with a birthday celebration. And god knows I  _hate_ celebrating my birthday.”  
   
Yuu’s jaw practically fell open at the carelessly said remark. “ _What_?” That couldn’t be right – what Akira had said had been true? But Yuu had been planning this surprise party for so long! There was no way he’d worked so long and hard on something only for Kouyou to detest it in the end!  
   
The raven-haired immediately huffed at Kouyou’s insensitive statement. “Well, you better like it, mister, because–” He only stopped himself in time when he realized he’d be giving the surprise away, but it was too late.  
   
“Because what?” Kouyou snapped, eyeing him strangely. The wheels in Kouyou’s head turned and the revelation was pieced together even faster than Yuu could manage to conjure up another reply.  
   
“Yuu,  _don’t_  you tell me there’s a surprise birthday party waiting for me in my house right now.”  
   
Yuu’s face went as pale as white sheets at his surprise having been deduced so easily. “That’s… not… true.” But Yuu had never been a good liar, and the shock on his face immediately gave everything away.  
   
_Oh_ , this wasn’t good. Kouyou looked more angered than happy, and his reactions stirred up an unsettling whirlwind in Yuu’s stomach. Why was Kouyou looking so upset? Where were the grateful kisses that Yuu thought Kouyou would smother him with and the gleeful smiles that Yuu thought Kouyou would wear? Why didn’t Kouyou look happy at all?  
   
“Fuck, there is, isn’t it?” Annoyance was clear in Kouyou’s dark eyes. Yuu felt himself beginning to tremble, his heart breaking apart so easily at the harshness of Kouyou’s tone the older man was presently using with him. Yuu had wanted Kouyou to have the best birthday of his life today, and every one of Yuu’s plans had gone exactly according to plan so far – except for the very birthday boy himself.  
   
Yuu never thought Kouyou could get this mad at him, seeing as he’d always assumed Kouyou loved him far too much to ever hurt him again, like how he had done so with the Die incident. But now Kouyou was mirroring the very man he had been on that fateful day; now Kouyou looked completely like the stranger Yuu hadn’t recognized on the day they’d both met Die together for the first time.  
   
And now Yuu was wondering if all his efforts had gone down the drain after all, and that maybe he shouldn’t even have attempted trying to make Kouyou happy at all.  
   
“I thought you would like it,” Yuu remained stubborn, unwilling to allow his voice to give way to the tears that were quickly choking up his throat. “It’s your birthday! How could I not have done anything? I’m your lover!”  
   
“I was hoping you’d have forgotten it,” Kouyou hissed, running a hand up his hair rather exasperatingly. He  _even_ looked irked at the way Yuu was getting all worked up over this, as if it was Kouyou’s fault Yuu’s plans weren’t going the way he wanted them to. “Seriously, Yuu? A birthday celebration? I thought you’d have known me better than to throw me one. You know I really hate these fancy sorts of parties. I do them for you because you like them, but I thought you knew I wouldn’t want one for myself personally. I’m way too old for these things, Yuu. I’m thirty-six, for god’s sake. And if Akira’s in my house right now, waiting to surprise me, I’m going to be really disappointed. I’d have thought he’d have advised you against it.”  
   
“I…” Yuu swallowed back a sob at how heartless Kouyou was acting. Akira  _really_ did advise against it at first, but… was the older man even hearing himself at all? Kouyou  _never_ spoke so roughly to the raven; Kouyou wouldn’t even dare to lay a finger on him. It was so hard to understand anything right now when Kouyou’s eyes were looking to him so distastefully, so abhorringly, looking nothing like the older man Yuu was so used to welcoming home. “Did you have a bad day at work, or something? Do you really hate celebrating your birthday that much? What’s wrong with you?! I was just trying to do something nice for you!”  
   
“Oh, so now it’s  _my_ fault,” Kouyou’s lips were in a tight line as he spoke, and Yuu’s heart splintered even further at his thoughtlessly uttered words. “You don’t get it, do you? I thought I’d made it clear I disliked anything to do with birthdays. They remind me of how old I’m getting, and you know how much I love you. I don’t like getting reminded that you’re just a baby in other people’s eyes. It’s disconcerting. I don’t like getting old, don’t you understand? Turning thirty-six today feels like death to me. I’m not very enthusiastic about it, Yuu.”  
   
“You… You say you love me, but you don’t even care that I planned all of this for you,” Yuu’s voice rose a decibel, almost yelling through his tears right now, and the raven-haired briefly wondered if everyone else back in the penthouse could hear Yuu and Kouyou arguing loudly outside the apartment door over the birthday surprise.  _How embarrassing_. Yuu might as well never face any one of them ever again after this. He’d gone through so much trouble to invite all of them here and making sure they’d freed up time to attend this birthday party, however all they had turned up to was a free show to a horrible fight between Yuu and Kouyou instead.  
   
“And did you just call me a  _baby_? What happened to thinking I was mature enough to be in a relationship with you? I thought we’d talked about this so long ago,” Yuu was too angered and hurt to even care that he’d begun to shed tears in front of the blond, hating just how easily it had been for him to break down right before Kouyou. But Yuu had spent so much time and effort on this party, because Kouyou was always the one doing things for him, and making sure Yuu was happy, and Yuu only wanted to do the same for Kouyou and show him just how much he loved him; and to hear how little Kouyou thought of all of Yuu’s efforts simply broke his heart. Yuu had wanted nothing more than to make Kouyou the happiest man in the world, but his efforts seem to have been in vain. Yuu had ended up making Kouyou  _so_  furious instead, and brought back the hot-tempered side of him that Yuu thought had ceased to exist.  
   
“Yuu, it’s fine to have birthday parties when you’re twenty-two,” Kouyou concluded. “ _Not_  thirty-six. And I agree, we’ve had the same argument about our age difference before, so I’m not going to repeat myself. You can think whatever you like, but it’s my birthday, and I hadn’t been planning to celebrate any of it at all. Perhaps I should have made myself clearer next time just how much I detest celebrating these stupid parties. At least now you know.”  
   
“‘Stupid’ parties?” Yuu’s voice came out cracked, in disbelief of what he’d just heard. Was that what Kouyou  _actually_ thought about a birthday celebration that Yuu had worked so hard on? Yuu had made everything  _perfect_. And everything had been goddamn perfect, if Yuu had to say so himself. Everything would have gone on flawlessly.  
   
Everything except for Takashima fucking Kouyou. Who knew his boyfriend hated birthdays so much, to the point he’d say such savage things to his much younger, much more fragile lover?  
   
“At least now I know,” Yuu gritted his teeth, his heart beyond wounded. He knew better now than to  _ever_ do anything moderately nice for the blond. Seeing no point to arguing with his lover any further, he immediately turned around, pulling the door to Kouyou’s penthouse open, a hand reaching up to wipe angrily at his wet eyes at the same time.  
   
“I’ll let everyone know you want them to go home.”  
   
The entire apartment was silent and the lights were still completely off when Yuu walked back in, with Kouyou trailing quietly behind him. Yuu wasn’t surprised – they must have heard the commotion just outside the door, and must have thought better than to continue with their original plans of jumping out and surprising Kouyou.  
   
“I’ll get the lights,” squeaked out Takanori’s voice from the side, and Yuu mumbled an upset ‘thanks’ as he folded his arms and patiently waited for the lights go back on. Yuu felt almost embarrassed when he realized Kouyou would be coming into sight with  _all_ the decorations Yuu had put up just to surprise the blond. The amount of effort Yuu had put into all of this was practically cringe-worthy. Yuu had no doubt Kouyou might even laugh into his face after, shaking his head at Yuu’s naivety that Kouyou might have liked any of this.  
   
The minute the lights went back on, Yuu waited for everyone to leave their hiding places, and to come face to face with grim-looking, disappointed faces. Yuu would have to answer up to all of them, all thanks to his unreasonable boyfriend, but it was okay. It was  _okay_. Yuu would be fine. Yuu would bade all of them goodbye, and be fine after he’d downed some glasses of wine and stuffed himself with all the expensive pastries he’d ordered to be made. Then he’d probably cry himself to sleep in a corner and refuse to speak to Kouyou until the older man would apologize to him, and even then it’d be too late. Yuu wouldn’t forgive Kouyou for humiliating him like this. It was  _all_ Kouyou’s fault things had turned out this way.  
   
It took Yuu several seconds to realize that no one had moved to get out of their places, chilling him to the bone and finally making himself aware of the fact that…  _that something was happening_. Yuu hadn’t any time to ponder about it, though, not when he suddenly heard Kouyou’s voice behind him, speaking in a low, husky tone, so different from the seething one from before.  
   
“Yuu, turn around.”  
   
And so Yuu did.  
   
And his heart almost jumped out of his own chest.  
   
Actually – it might just have. Because Kouyou wasn’t standing anymore,  _no_ ; he was down on one knee, and all of the wrath on his face had melted away. Or perhaps it hadn’t even been real, and Kouyou had been faking his anger from before all these time. That would make more sense, and explain as to why Kouyou had suddenly gotten  _so_ mad at Yuu without reason at all. All of it had been an act in the first place. That  _bastard_. Yuu should have known Kouyou wouldn’t have gotten so unreasonable without a hidden agenda in the first place.  
   
Yuu’s heart was racing so fast he couldn’t even think; there was only one reason why Kouyou would be on a single knee right now and it was too obvious to guess why.  
   
Yuu hadn’t been expecting this at all.  
   
Kouyou always looked so handsome. So charming, so dashing, just like a prince that had waltzed into Yuu’s life out of nowhere like a magical fairytale. Kouyou’s hair, a gorgeous cool shade of blond, had been swept to the side, and his eyes were twinkling with the same mischief and mystery that he’d held in them from the very first day Yuu had met him. He still had his usual eyebags decorating his eyes, but Yuu knew they were made up of so much sweat and hard work, and Yuu always admired Kouyou so much for it. Kouyou’s jaw was always so strong, and his skin so fair, and every part of him was so,  _so_ perfect.  
   
The white long sleeves of Kouyou’s work shirt had been rolled up to his elbows, and he’d long taken off his black coat and discarded it elsewhere. His arms held prominent veins that were telling of his age, but they had always made Kouyou look sexier, and Yuu had never paid much heed to their age difference. Kouyou was Kouyou, no matter how much older he was. Kouyou was his soulmate. Kouyou was the one who he’d long decided would take care of him forever, and who Yuu would take care of in return, too. Yuu would never leave his side willingly, not even in sickness or death.  
   
And Kouyou felt exactly the same.  
   
“I know this might feel too sudden, but…” An awkward smile spread across Kouyou’s face, and he was suddenly so shy it was endearing. Yuu had begun to smile himself, still unable to believe what was happening before him. “I sure hope to god I hadn’t scared you when I got angry at you at the front door. That wasn’t my intention, believe me; I would never dare be so ungrateful so as to get mad at you for celebrating my birthday for me. I was delighted to find out at first, in fact. It really made me happy. But I needed a reason to make this surprise all the more worthwhile, and I thought it’d be a risk worth taking. That is, I had anticipated to at least get slapped in the face for being so rude to you, but you’re far kinder than I thought.”  
   
“You’re such an asshole,” Yuu laughed out, when the realization came to light, raising a hand up to wipe at hazy eyes. He wasn’t so sure why he was still crying, since he had no reason to be upset anymore, but Yuu had a feeling that they had slowly turned into tears of happiness, not sadness. “You… You knew about my party for you beforehand?! I can’t believe you found out! This isn’t fair at all.”  
   
“Maybe you need to start learning to be more discreet, then,” Kouyou chuckled, shaking his head to his lover. “Don’t blame anyone else for it – they all kept mum about it. I found out because one night you had fallen asleep against your sketchbook before I’d gotten back home, and on the pages you had planned out  _everything_. Perhaps it was my fault for reading it, but if I hadn’t, I would never have come up with the perfect surprise proposal for you. I contacted every single one of your guests and told them I was going to turn my surprise birthday bash into a surprise proposal, and trust me,  _all_ of them need to be commended on how silent they’ve been about this.”  
   
“Everyone knew?!” Yuu gawked, eyeing everyone in the room with a dissatisfied gaze. He met with many knowing smiles, and pleased looks – especially those from Takanori and Akira. “I swear to god… I must have looked like an idiot all these while.”  
   
“No, the both of you are pretty cute,” Takanori spoke up. “And  _so_ romantic. The both of you were trying to surprise each other in your own ways, but Kouyou always ends up triumphing in the end anyway. You forget who you’re up against, Yuu. You totally underestimated him.”  
   
“Thank you, Takanori,” Kouyou laughed, accepting Takanori’s compliments readily. He turned his focus back to Yuu, gazing up to him with utmost affection and adoration. “But it doesn’t matter who won this surprise battle, Yuu. It doesn’t matter who loves each other more… I used to worry so much about things like that, I used to worry you didn’t feel the same way I did for you. I used to worry I loved you far more than you could ever do for me. At the end of it, these things don’t really matter, do they? In our eyes, we’ll never be enough for the other. We’ll have a ton of insecurities when it comes to each other, no matter what, no matter what the other says.  
   
But I want you to know that I want to be there everytime you need a  _Don’t worry, I love you_  or a  _It doesn’t matter, I love you_. I want to be there every step of the way to reassure you that you are good enough. I want to always be there to kiss your tears away and soothe all your worries gone. I want to always carry you up into my arms, until I grow old enough not to be able to do so. And even then, at 80, I still want to wake up to your beautiful face next to me, and I still want to kiss you until I forget who I am. You’ll still be so healthy and energetic by then, and I’d be so jealous of you. But you’d also be the same Shiroyama Yuu I know, the Aoi I first met, the pretty raven-haired goddess with eyes that could take my soul away. I want to grow old with you, Yuu. And I really hope you’ll let me do so.”  
   
Yuu had cupped a hand over his mouth by this point in time, wet tears falling off his long lashes, the smile on his face growing so wide it practically hurt. He watched on with moist eyes as Kouyou’s hand dug into the depths of his pocket and pulled out a black, velvety box, opening it as delicately as he could, revealing the most dazzling ring Yuu had ever lay his eyes upon.  
   
It was a silver-onyx engagement ring that had been crafted beautifully by his favourite jewelry brand into spirals; and sitting atop it was a sparkling diamond that had been carefully carved out intricately into the elegant shape of a rose.  
   
Yuu could tell from a single glance that Kouyou must have put  _so_ much thought into it, and that alone convinced him Kouyou would equally put as much thought into taking care of Yuu for the rest of his life.  
   
“Will you marry me, my little flower?” Kouyou finally asked, mustering up all the courage he had to do so.  
   
For that split second, Yuu was painfully aware that all eyes were on him, waiting for bated breath for Yuu’s final decision. And for that split second, Yuu suddenly understood why Kouyou had thought it to be a good idea to use this surprise birthday party to propose. Because everyone they loved that was a heavy part of their lives were around them, and Kouyou wanted everyone they cared about to be able to witness this intimate moment of their life; Kouyou wanted everyone to see him finally make Yuu his blushing fiancé.  
   
It was amusing, actually, to see how nervous everyone was, the most anxious one being Kouyou himself. Yuu saw no reason for Kouyou to even worry about Yuu possibly denying him. Yuu had promised himself to Kouyou since so long ago, and today his answer would only further solidify itself.  
   
He’d been waiting for this day for far too long.  
   
“Yes,” Yuu answered tearfully, without an ounce of hesitation. Pure relief and happiness swept over Kouyou’s face, and for a second the future groom looked too thrilled to speak, and was at a loss for words. Yuu let slip a soft giggle at his reaction, finding the older man too cute, and he helped Kouyou out by extending his hand out, waiting for Kouyou to finally claim him as his rightful fiancé.  
   
Kouyou immediately took the cue and hurriedly picked the gorgeous ring up from the box, sliding it right across Yuu’s finger, evidently proving the ring to be a perfect fit. Kouyou must have checked for Yuu’s ring size beforehand, and Yuu knew Takanori must have played a part in this, too.  
   
Once the ring was on, everyone else took this as their sign to explode into a firm round of applause, leaving their hiding places as they did so, cheering excitedly for the newly engaged couple. Kouyou quickly got up on both feet, grinning foolishly like he’d just struck the very jackpot itself. He immediately scooped Yuu up into his arms, carrying him bridal-style, and lowered his lips to Yuu’s, capturing the raven-haired’s mouth in a soft kiss. Briefly drawing their faces apart, the both of them gazed into each other’s eyes tenderly, knowing they’d just made a decision that would affect the rest of their lives forever. And Yuu frankly couldn’t wait to begin that new chapter of his life. Yuu could  _hardly_ wait.   
   
Their private moment was short-lived, however, when their friends and family soon swarmed them eagerly with chatter, congratulating the couple on their engagement and taunting them for further news of their marriage. Takanori pulled Yuu to the side and insisted on attending all of Yuu’s clothing fittings, saying he wouldn’t allow Yuu to walk down the aisle dressed in cheap, overrated fashion. Takanori wouldn’t stop gushing over Yuu’s ring either, despite having known of it for a few months now, claiming Yuu was so lucky to have him as his best friend to help his boyfriend out, and so lucky to have Kouyou as his boyfriend to be able to afford such a gorgeous, one-of-a-kind ring. It’d been custom-made according to Kouyou’s requirements, Takanori had raved, and Kouyou had made sure every inch and every cut of the diamond ring had been absolutely  _perfect_ , for he wouldn’t settle for anything less.  
   
It turned out that the brainchild behind the ring was mostly still credited to Kouyou; he’d wanted to give Yuu something that symbolized their relationship and was unique to them and them  _only_ , and since Yuu had always been his beautiful flower from the very start, Kouyou wanted to give him a ring that meant just that. And Yuu loved it. Yuu absolutely loved the idea, and the ring, and the very meaning it symbolized. And above it all, Yuu loved Kouyou to the ends of the universe, and he loved how much effort Kouyou had put in to execute this. He loved Kouyou so  _goddamn_ much.  
   
Akira, however, had little to say when he pulled Kouyou to the side to congratulate him, unlike Takanori to Yuu. But a look from him was all Kouyou needed, to know just how happy Akira was for him, and the both of them ended up hugging it out, feeling rather sentimental for the time being as Kouyou moved onto a new chapter in his life. It was extremely adorable to witness – Yuu and Takanori found themselves giggling at the cute sight, and Takanori eventually snapped a photo of it rather casually onto his phone.  
   
~  
   
The evening passed by in a euphoric blur, and Yuu found himself more eager to spend time with Kouyou alone than with everyone else. Kouyou, of course, entertained everyone like the charming host he was, mingling and participating in games with everyone else, now with his newly engaged fiancé standing by his side – and by the end of the night, the both of them were completely deadbeat. They hadn’t drunk much, afraid they wouldn’t be conscious enough to be good hosts, and whenever Yuu felt Kouyou had too much of his drink, the raven-haired would hide his wine glasses from him, doing his first duty as newly appointed fiancé. Kouyou didn’t even bother protesting; he let Yuu do as he pleased, knowing Yuu was looking after Kouyou’s best interests, and would only continue to do so as they ventured down their path together.  
   
Later on, Takanori and Akira helped out with the cleaning up for an hour or two after everyone had left, but even then, Kouyou had been the first to pester Akira to take Takanori home, not wanting to occupy them for too long just to help them out.  
   
After Yuu and Kouyou managed to clean up and trash out most of their messes, they took quick showers and decided to call it a day, returning to the comfort of their bed as soon as they could. As usual, Yuu crawled right up into Kouyou’s arms to fall asleep, except this time it felt just a  _little_ wee bit different than all the other times. Yuu couldn’t pinpoint what precisely it was – it just was. The air felt fresher; it felt easier to breathe. Maybe it was because all the questions and  _what if_ s in the world had finally eradicated and Yuu no longer had anything burdening his shoulders. No more uncertainty, no more hesitancy about the steps he had to make. Just love. And as the blond remained seated upon the bed under the shimmering moonlight, Yuu thought Kouyou looked nothing less like an angel. An angel that would now protect him forever. Yuu thought he could get used to this new feeling, he really did.  
   
“Thank you for the sweetest birthday surprise,” Kouyou murmured, and once Yuu had curled up into his arms, he planted a sweet kiss atop Yuu’s forehead. “It was the best birthday I’d ever had.”  
   
“Really?” Yuu’s eyes lit up, looking up to his lover. “Then I’d have accomplished what I set out to do. I wanted you to have the best birthday ever. The best birthday with  _me._  I’m so glad you liked it! Even if it wasn’t necessarily a surprise, per say…”  
   
“I loved it, sweetheart,” Kouyou grinned, leaning down to nuzzle his nose against Yuu’s own one. Yuu smiled in return as their skins touched, knowing he would never tire of Kouyou doing this to him, not even for another hundred million times. “I loved how much thought and planning went into it. I loved how you wanted to do so much just to make me feel loved and happy. I loved everything about it. I might  _also_  have loved how much easier it got for me to decide on how to go about doing my proposal.”  
   
“Hey!” Yuu nudged him playfully in the ribs, beaming at the reminder of Kouyou’s wonderfully executed proposal earlier. “That’s not fair! You hijacked my surprise!”  
   
“You’re going to have to prepare yourself to be ‘hijacked’ a lot more now, Yuu,” Kouyou laughed. “You just signed yourself up for a life with me, princess.”  
   
“I thought I did that a long time ago,” Yuu made a small pout, sinking his head into Kouyou’s chest. “I just  _sort of_  made word on that promise, today.”  
   
“Mmm, you did,” Kouyou smiled widely to him. “And you made me the happiest man on earth. You’ll never get rid of me from now on.”  
   
“ _You’re_  the one that will never get rid of me!” Yuu proudly declared, his face happy and smug. “I landed myself Takashima Kouyou. I can’t even believe it myself.”  
   
“ _I_  can’t believe you said yes,” Kouyou grinned. “I can’t believe I’ve tied you down, now.”  
   
“I’ve belonged right to you from day one,” Yuu said in a soft whisper, moving his hand up to thumb at Kouyou’s cheek. His eyes slipped over quickly to his ring finger, watching the rose diamond glisten beautifully in the darkness. “The ring’s so beautiful.”  
   
“You really like it?” The corners of Kouyou’s mouth turned up into a smile. “I’m so glad. I’ve worked so hard on it.”  
   
“Taka told me you came up with it yourself,” Yuu eyed the ring in admiration. “I love what it symbolizes and how its meaning is unique to us.”  
   
“Takanori definitely helped out, too,” Kouyou said. “I must have gone through a million rose designs before we both found one that we thought you’d like. And I only wanted the best for you. Something that would be deserving of my fiancé. I’d give the entire world to you.” And Kouyou’s eyes were gazing fondly to Yuu’s face as the words left him, the love on the older man’s face hard to miss.  
   
“I don’t have much to offer to you myself,” Yuu smiled weakly up to the blond. “But I promise I’ll make you as happy as I can. I’m here for you no matter what. I’ll do the best that I can. I’ll try not to be a burden to you. I’ll be all that you want.”  
   
“You will  _never_  be a burden to me,” Kouyou lowered his head, pressing their foreheads against each other. “Yuu, listen. You will always be the reason I wake up in the morning, and the reason I find motivation to work so hard in life. We have so many plans we have yet to fulfill. There’s still marriage, a honeymoon, a family we could possibly have in the future…  
   
I still have a million galas and dinner dates I have to take you on, princess. Things can only get better from hereon. I’ll fulfill every of your dreams, for you’ve fulfilled every one of mine. And I never knew I could dream so much, not until after I’d met you. Your happiness will be mine. My heart is already yours. I’ll do anything for you. I love you.”  
   
Yuu didn’t have anything else to say that would convey his feelings better than with a kiss. He leaned his lips up and pressed them gently against Kouyou’s ones, melting right into Kouyou’s touch. They’d always fit together so well, the way Yuu sunk against his skin, the way he curved right into Kouyou’s missing spaces. Kouyou had never lost the rich-scented, musky cologne he wore from day one, and as Yuu inhaled all of it in, he thought how he’d never thought this would become a piece of familiarity to him. He’d never thought this would have become a scent he would eagerly await to take a whiff of every night, he’d never thought the man he’d met that first night in a black Lamborghini would eventually become the love of his life, and his husband.  
   
Their kissing was different tonight. They usually kissed with so much lust and vigour, their hands everywhere on each other; but tonight it was slow, and quiet, and so passionate. Their bodies moved unhurriedly, their legs entangled with each other’s languidly, and the tingling of their breaths was hot against their cheeks.  Every time Kouyou twirled his tongue with Yuu’s it turned the raven-haired light-headed and fuzzy. Yuu was in love. Simple touches sent sparks up his spine, and blood rushed to his head every time Kouyou bit against his lower lip. Kouyou held him so preciously Yuu felt like porcelain. Yuu had never felt safer in anyone else’s arms.  
   
Yuu might have gotten used to the many raunchy, intense nights they’d spent together, always involving messy, slobbery kissing and feverish fucking with one another, but a change of pace was always nice. There was always a time and place for things, and tonight was the perfect moment to make love slowly to each other under the glowing moonlight. Kouyou looked utterly beautiful as he lay Yuu down against the sheets, the light coming in through the windows and casting approving rays upon the two of them, illuminating both their faces.  
   
“My princess,” Kouyou whispered as he gazed down to Yuu, taking in the ravishing sight before him. The older man circled a gentle grip around Yuu’s slender wrist, raising the raven-haired’s arms up as Kouyou pulled his shirt off him. They were undressed in seconds, and their naked lithe figures were pressing up against each other once more, their mouths upon the other’s neck. Kouyou kissed him  _everywhere_ ; his lips trailing from his jaw, to his nape, to his shoulders, to his pale chest. Yuu’s moans were soft in the silence; his head was pressed firmly against the pillows behind him, while Kouyou focused on savouring his body in the front, his tongue gliding down across his supple skin.  
   
Yuu’s long, dark hair fanned out gracefully underneath him as he arched his body back, watching as Kouyou’s head disappeared in between his thighs. Kouyou’s tongue licked at the tip of his member, teasing at the slit, but the touch disappeared as fast as it came. Not for long, though; a minute later Kouyou’s tongue had relocated to the front of Yuu’s entrance, slinking right inside of the raven’s taut hole.  
   
“ _Uun_ , Kou…” Yuu’s breath quivered as Kouyou’s warm, pulsing tongue circled inside of him, experimentally at first; and then furiously, going in with rough, anxious strokes. “Oh…  _oh_ … Kouyou…  _it feels so good,_ fuck…!”  
   
Flushed and panting, Yuu’s hips trembled with every little motion that Kouyou’s tongue did inside of him. His ebony-painted nails dug deep into the white sheets underneath him, his eyes falling shut to the pleasure that was gradually building up inside of him. His cock erected accordingly, pre-cum gathering at the top and dribbling down the sides as Kouyou kissed and licked him in every place possible.  
   
_Oh_ , Kouyou could listen to him for hours. Yuu’s moans rose softly in pitch and ended in short breathless gasps, whining every other second as Kouyou’s tongue slid across his sensitive spot. Yuu clenched his thighs together, squeezing his walls around Kouyou’s wet organ, and  _fuck_  did the pressure feel good against his prostate. Yuu wanted more of it,  _more_ , more of Kouyou’s hardness, more of Kouyou’s warmth, something thicker, something much  _larger_  –  
   
“Please,” Yuu murmured, his voice weak and soft as it escaped him. Kouyou pulled his tongue out and moved himself up over the raven-haired, pulling him back into a firm, sloppy kiss. Yuu could feel Kouyou’s hard erection pressing up against his thigh, and he knew the older man was more than ready to take him.  
   
“I remember when I first asked you if you ever planned to get married in the future,” Kouyou’s words caught Yuu off-guard, his lips nibbling sharply at Yuu’s collarbones. “Remember that? On our third date.” His hands slipped in between Yuu’s legs, pulling them apart, before positioning himself appropriately, taking a good hold of his cock and pressing it right against Yuu’s slicked entrance.  _Fuck_ , Kouyou was almost fully hard; his tip had become a dark shade of a red and was eager to penetrate his lover.  
   
Yuu remembered that date. They’d fucked for the first time that night, and it had been absolutely wild, delirious, addictive sex. Yuu had never been fucked  _so_ good before, and it’d ruined his entire sexual appetite – increased it, even.  
   
“I do,” Yuu nodded his head stiffly, hips jerking up impatiently against Kouyou’s cock. Kouyou’s length twitched at the contact, undoubtedly craving for the same contact Yuu was, and very quickly Kouyou was sliding inside of Yuu with a lewd squelch, and the sudden thickness sent Yuu whimpering, his thighs shaking weakly at the intrusion. “ _Uunn_ … Kou…”  
   
“You told me you didn’t have any plans for marriage at all,” Kouyou breathed out, eyes slinking shut at how Yuu’s hot, tight insides were immediately contracting around his cock and how  _fucking_ good it felt. He wasn’t even halfway in yet, but Yuu’s hips were squirming so much, and his lips were parted open in unintelligible murmurs and moans. “But you said you wanted to get married eventually. And when I heard that I got insanely jealous. The thought of you ever finding happiness with another man made my heart ache, even if I didn’t understand why at that time.”  
   
“ _Unn_ … Idiot,” Yuu crooned out a noise of pleasure as Kouyou held a hand against his hip, keeping him steady while he slid himself all the way inside Yuu.  
   
“I can’t believe you said yes,” Kouyou said so softly, his voice so faint, his face partially shielded by the darkness.  
   
It took Yuu several moments to make out glimmering tears against Kouyou’s obscure eyes, a sight that was so rarely seen Yuu immediately felt himself growing anxious. Kouyou was…  _crying_?  
   
Yuu’s heart was in his throat. He knew they couldn’t be anything but tears of joy, and the knowledge that Kouyou was so happy, so  _relieved,_ so thankful for Yuu agreeing to marry him, made the raven-haired slightly teary as well. Kouyou must have wanted this so much, hadn’t he? Kouyou had loved Yuu even before Yuu had wanted to decide upon his feelings for the blond, after all. Kouyou must have been so anxious for so long, and to add on to that, they’d almost lost each other a couple of times because of petty fights and arguments. They’d come so far, and learnt so much from each other along the way. Yuu wasn’t the sugar baby Aoi he’d used to be; and Kouyou was no longer the ruthless, cold-hearted lover he’d been.  
   
“I can’t believe you’re mine,” Kouyou continued, his lips widening into an iridescent smile. “I never thought someone like you would want to be with me.”  
   
“Why are you saying such silly things,” Yuu frowned up to him, beckoning for Kouyou to lean in for a kiss. The older man peppered his face with cute butterfly kisses, so much so that it elicited a giggle from the raven. “I love you just as much. We’re inseparable, now. Like you said, your dreams are mine. Your happiness is mine. And my heart is yours. It doesn’t matter whether we’re good enough for each other or not, because in our hearts we’ll never feel enough.  
   
But I’ll be there for you every single time you don’t feel enough. And I’ll be with you every step of the way to remind you you’re just perfect. I’ll never leave your side. You’ll never have to be alone, now.”  
   
Yuu’s hand ran up Kouyou’s soft blond strands, watching as his rose encrusted diamond ring glinted amidst all of the shadows in the night. Kouyou’s tear-stained cheeks sank against Yuu’s neck, his heart pressed right up Yuu’s beating chest.  
   
“How strange is it that I’ve never felt more myself than when I’m with you,” Kouyou murmured, his face contented. “Fancy you being able to turn Takashima Kouyou human again. I’m so happy now it’s insane.”  
   
Yuu’s fingers caressed past his hair, his tone hushed. “Maybe because home has never been a place, it’s a person. And you are my home.”

Perhaps, in this shrewd game of seeking arrangements, some good  _did_  come out of it after all. Perhaps they had always been seeking for a home they could seek solace in, and arms they could nestle themselves into. And after all they’ve been through, Yuu was certain that Kouyou was a home he could return to, no matter what.  
  
Perhaps – just perhaps – he’d finally found the one arrangement he’d been looking for.

“And  _you_  are mine,” Kouyou smiled, raising his gaze back up to Yuu, his eyes focused on the prettiest diamond he’d ever seen, carved in the shape of a raven-haired flower, glistening right before him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FYI, here are reference photos for Yuu’s engagement ring: [the ring itself](https://41.media.tumblr.com/763b75be643933f840830c81bf164fb0/tumblr_nwrvv0okte1rtf9v6o1_1280.png) | [the rose carved diamond](http://www.markschneiderdesign.com/sites/default/files/images/jewelry/Rose.jpg)
> 
>  
> 
> **Seeking Arrangement has ended.**
> 
>  
> 
> BUT. 
> 
> Fortunately (or unfortunately), this story ended officially on a 49th chapter, and I am super anal about it not being a full number, so I will be adding a 50th chapter – which will be some sort of side story for SA :) So there _is_ still one more chapter to go! But technically this chapter is the official end for SA.
> 
> The reason why I’m updating 2 chapters at once (a total of 6 chapter updates this month! Whaaa~) is because I’m going to be extremely busy for the next few months. I doubt I’ll have time to write for leisure anymore, but I really hate leaving things hanging, so I wanted to end it now. I’m not _exactly_ sure when I will be able to write the 50th chapter, so we’ll just have to see!
> 
> I have put _so_ much of myself into this fic. So much of myself, my time, my emotions, my inspiration – I have been so devoted to SA. I made sure I met a quota of updating at least four times a month – and I surprise myself with my drive to finish this piece of fiction sometimes. It’s the most motivated I’ve been for anything I’ve written, ever. Can you believe SA is 600 pages in Microsoft Word :D That's like the length of 3 novels, probably. But I’ve enjoyed writing SA so much, and it contains so much elements I adore and characters that I’ve shaped and everything is so close to my heart. So if you adore SA, you adore something very personal to me. :D And I am very, very honoured.
> 
> I really have to thank _you_ so much for leaving comments every step of the way, or even sending me messages via other platforms to tell me how much you enjoyed this fic. As sappy/cheesy/unoriginal as this sounds, I really might not have been as motivated to share my work if I didn’t have people excited about it. So thank you so much.
> 
> I’ll see you in the next Seeking Arrangement chapter, when I can afford time for it. In the meantime, please share your thoughts with me – I’d love to hear what you have to say for the last time in a while <3
> 
> PS: I wrote this entire chapter to Perfect (Stripped Version) by 1D! It’s soo cute~ I adore the song much. It’s the last song on my [SA Spotify playlist](https://play.spotify.com/user/11177336146/playlist/5TTTl4RlQG82pkD7sahP2j), so you can check it out <3


	50. New Year's: Side-story I

On hindsight, Yuu probably shouldn’t have taken that second drink.  
  
Or the one right after. And the next one after that. And the next.  
  
…Yuu lost count.  
  
“But it’s _New Year’s_ , Yuu, don’t be a killjoy,” Takanori had purred rather drunkenly, his coy eyes sweeping over Yuu’s direction. Under normal circumstances, Yuu would have raised an eyebrow at the flirtatious manner Takanori was gazing to him in, but since neither Kouyou nor Akira seemed to mind, the raven-haired didn’t care, either. It wasn’t unusual for Takanori to be particularly teasing and playful when he had too much to drink, and besides, it _was_ the New Year’s – Yuu really should lighten up.  
  
The night had gone on flawlessly so far. Both couples had agreed to spend the New Year’s together, and Kouyou and Akira had teamed up to plan for the most _mindblowing_ date night Yuu and Takanori ever had. The raven and the brunet hadn’t expected it, at first. They’d innocently tagged along with their significant other and dined on insanely expensive meals on the rooftop of a five-star restaurant, and thought that was as far as it went. But just as they finished up with their meals, Kouyou begun dialing suspiciously for someone to pick them up; and before they knew it, the deafening drill of a helicopter’s blades could be heard from the distance.  
  
And that was when the two helicopters descended just fourteen feet away from them. Yuu and Takanori’s eyes had dilated so much in sheer shock and surprise then – _of course_ their affluent partners would pull out such a flashy move. Of _goddamn_ course. Yuu had to really give credit to their ingenuity, though. He had tugged at Kouyou’s arm in excitement, unwilling to believe his eyes, not missing the way an arrogant and triumphant smirk spread across Kouyou’s lips as he did so. Ugh, Kouyou knew he was _so_ getting laid later, and Yuu couldn’t even fault him for getting smug at that knowledge.  
  
They’d perfectly timed their ascent into the sky to be five minutes before the beginning of the fireworks for the New Year, and Yuu had never witnessed up-close anything more beautiful than this. The moments leading to the countdown had been perfect, since neither one tore their eyes away from each other as they counted down each second with their every breath. And the moment the clock struck midnight, Yuu and Kouyou had passionately kissed in front of thousands of shattering sparks in the sky. Yuu had never felt more complete in his life. Everything in his life was _perfect_. He had long moved in with the love of his life, he was spending every moment of his time with his incredibly thoughtful _and_ handsome fiancé by his side, and they’d hired a wedding planner two months ago and were in the midst of their intense preparation for the most important moment of their lives.  
  
The night didn’t end so soon, of course. After the fireworks ended, the helicopters had descended back to the ground and dropped them off, and the older men had asked their younger lovers if they felt tired and wanted to retire early back to bed, or if they preferred to instead pick someone’s place to head over to for a couple of drinks.  
  
They chose the latter. Or, more like, Takanori enthusiastically did, and Yuu saw no harm in supporting his best friend’s decision and dragging the night out a little bit longer.  
  
So here they were, at Kouyou’s place, a bottle of red wine set aside on the coffee table, and a wine glass cupped in each person’s hand. Kouyou had his arm lovingly entwined around Yuu’s waist, his lips buried into Yuu’s strawberry-scented hair; whilst Takanori was sitting in Akira’s embrace, giggling non-stop at something amusing his lover had just said. They’d played board games for an hour or so before this, but had quickly grown bored of it, and so they decided on lounging against the sofa and partaking in idle, hushed conversations instead.  
  
“We’re almost all out,” Takanori was lamenting, two hours into drinking, and to Yuu’s (groggy) surprise, the wine glass in his hand was almost empty as well. “Can we get more?”  
  
“Need more, too,” Yuu slurred, turning his head abruptly to face his rather composed fiancé. Unlike Yuu, Kouyou was barely knocked out, and was wide awake. The man always knew how to hold his liquor well, but it wasn’t as if he had drunk much tonight anyway; Kouyou didn’t seem in the mood for much drinking tonight.  
  
“You’ve drank a lot,” Kouyou murmured in worry, his lips lowering to Yuu’s ear in a whisper. Yuu visibly winced as Kouyou planted a soft kiss atop his head, his arms tightening their grasp around the smaller raven-haired. “Do you really want to drink more?”  
  
“It’s the New Year’s, Kouyou,” Yuu found himself repeating Takanori’s words to him from before. “Live it up a little.” He could feel Takanori’s approving gaze on him from behind.  
  
Amusement flashed in Kouyou’s eyes at his lover’s words. “As you wish, princess.” Turning to glance over to his best friend, Kouyou’s arms slowly loosened around Yuu, ready to pull himself off from his seat on the sofa. “Akira, want to go get more drinks from the kitchen?”  
  
“Mm,” the other man answered from across, though his concerned eyes wouldn’t tear away from Takanori. “I usually wouldn’t approve, but…”  
  
“You guys can occupy one of my rooms later,” Kouyou hastened to say, knowing that it was late and that it wouldn’t be safe for any of them to drive later. “It’s fine, really.”  
  
Akira uttered a low sigh, seeing no reason to put up an argument. “It’s New Year’s, after all.” And he had to live it up, like Takanori suggested.  
  
Once both men had retreated to the kitchen, leaving the raven and the brunet alone, Takanori was quick to scoot over from his position on the sofa to Yuu’s side, still intoxicatedly holding his wine glass in hand. Yuu found himself bursting into giggles at how sloshed Takanori seemed, though he wasn’t exactly sure why. _God_ , everything seemed funny now. Perhaps he really should have stopped at his second drink.  
  
And he would soon come to realize he _really_ should have.  
  
“This seems pretty random to ask, but you’ve never told me how you and Kouyou met,” Takanori grinned, curious eyes peering right into Yuu’s ones. Yuu stared up to him defiantly, unwilling to back down from Takanori’s sudden aggressiveness.  
  
“It’s not as interesting as you think,” Yuu huffed, but he was soon filled with uncontrollable giggles when Takanori crawled atop him and jabbed playfully at his ribs. “No, really!”  
  
“Aw, come on, I helped you guys get engaged, tell me, I’m yourrrr best friendddd,” Takanori cooed, reducing Yuu to further laughter as he tickled the raven-haired seated underneath him. “Yuuuuu~”  
  
Did Yuu ever mention he was _extremely_ sensitive?  
  
“You’re horrible!” Yuu whined, trying desperately in vain to push the brunet off of him. “Fine, but you can’t tell Akira about this.”  
  
“Tell Akira about what?” Takanori played oblivious.  
  
“About _this_!” The raven looked horrified.  
  
“Exactly my point. There’s nothing to tell Akira about,” Takanori snickered smugly, triggering Yuu to roll his eyes. Why was Takanori suddenly so interested, anyway? He hadn’t asked for almost two years now.  
  
“Yuuu~ Tell meeee~”  
  
Oh, _fuck_ it. It wasn’t as if Yuu was ashamed of this secret, anyhow. Takanori was bound to find out sooner or later, at the rate the both of them had their nightly double-date drinking nights. Besides, it was New Year’s, right? Anything could happen on New Year’s.  
  
_Anything_.  
  
“I used to sugar date,” Yuu scoffed out, surprised at how easy the confession had left his lips. The wine must have helped a _ton_. Ah, whatever. He’d deal with the weight of his regret the next morning. “And Kouyou used to… well…”  
  
Takanori’s hands immediately slapped over his mouth dramatically at the realization of the true nature of Yuu and Kouyou’s relationship.  
  
“Oh my _god_ ,” Takanori’s eyes were on the verge of bulging out, the confession too juicy for him to handle. “Kouyou’s your sugar daddy.”  
  
“Is. Was. _Was_!” Yuu corrected, brandishing his hands wildly in the air. “We’re engaged, now!”  
  
Takanori sniggered, looking extremely pleased with himself for acquiring such information. “I can’t believe the both of you used to have a paid arrangement! I just _knew_ there was something suspicious about how you were able to find a man like him. There was just no way a simple college student could pick a man like that off the street.”  
  
“Don’t you dare tell Akira about this,” Yuu shot Takanori a heated glare, a reaction to which Takanori simply stifled a laugh at. “I’m not sure if Kouyou ever wants Akira to know, so it’s not in my position to say anything.”  
  
Takanori made a cheeky gesture of sealing his lips shut. “I wasn’t going to say anything. Ah, but it’s not as if I’m surprised you used to dabble in sugar dating, either.”  
  
Yuu folded his arms, offended by the odd remark that came out of the blue. “Why, do I already give off some sort of look that says I’m a slut?”  
  
“No, honey,” Takanori laughed, leaning in dangerously close to his raven-haired best friend, startling Yuu a little at their sudden close proximity. As a hand of Takanori’s reached over to tuck a loose strand of Yuu’s long fringe back behind the raven-haired ear, the brunet was suddenly looking to Yuu in adoration, a brazen smile on his face.  
  
_He shouldn’t be looking at me like that._  
  
“I just find you naturally, _really_ , pretty. Can’t I even appreciate my best friend a little?”  
  
Yuu’s heart skipped half a beat.  
  
For a mere second, Yuu thought he’d drank enough to begin hallucinating Takanori’s interest in him. Oh, but if this was real, Yuu had gone out on enough dates with men to recognize this sort of tension. The way Takanori was speaking to him – was he actually… _flirting_ with the raven-haired? Holy fucking shit.  
  
Takanori’s lips were moving in so close now, Yuu could feel the hot air of his breath against Yuu’s skin. And those eyes – had Takanori’s eyes always looked so _vampy_? – his dark orbs were sensually glancing over to Yuu once more, gazing down right into Yuu’s half-lidded, confused eyes. Yuu found himself under Takanori’s sudden scrutiny, as if he were a meal to be devoured, and he wasn’t used to being exposed to this side of Takanori, wasn’t used to receiving such _obvious_ attention from his best friend.  
  
It wasn’t as if Takanori wasn’t attractive himself – he _was_ , and that was the goddamn problem. Yuu could smell the sweet scent of his overpowering, expensive perfume, no doubt a love gift from Akira, and Yuu could almost inspect Takanori’s immacutely drawn eyeliner from how near in vicinity they were; the brunet’s brown eyes fluttering down to a seductive close as he pressed his forehead right against Yuu’s.  
  
Their noses were almost touching.  
  
“Takanori,” Yuu’s voice came out in a slightly hesitant whisper, his eyes widening, knowing very well what their next move would be. What frightened him wasn’t the fact that Takanori was _so_ obviously making a move on him in their drunken state – what frightened him was the fact that Yuu saw no reason not to give in. Because, well, _fuck it_ , it was New Year’s, right? And making out with his irresistibly hot best friend didn’t seem to have any immediate repercussions to Yuu. For now.  
  
“This doesn’t mean anything,” Takanori lowered his tone, sultry eyes in a hypnotic, alluring lull, his lips brushing slightly against Yuu’s soft ones. “You know it doesn’t.”  
  
“It doesn’t,” Yuu agreed, whispering back, his eyes falling to a slow close, gently relaxing into Takanori’s touch now that he knew they were both on the same page. He knew the brunet meant it. They weren’t in love, and it was clear to them even in their inebriated state. Their true lovers were hidden away in the kitchen, but for now – _just_ , for now, Takanori’s lips were so incredibly tempting, _Jesus Christ_ , and the manner in which those luscious lashes fluttered up to Yuu made the raven-haired tingle deep from within his spine. _Oh_ , he’d never looked at Takanori at anything more than a friend before, but the sexual tension and heat between them right now was driving Yuu _mad_. Yuu thought he could go crazy if he didn’t taste those lips at least once.  
  
A fleeting voice in his head told Yuu that Akira was _so_ going to kill him. Kouyou, too, of course, but Yuu could pacify his lover anytime. Right?  
  
(Who was Yuu kidding – Kouyou would kill him, too.)  
  
“ _Uunn,_ ” Takanori mewled softly, the moment Yuu captured his lips with his.  
  
_Fuck_ , Yuu thought as he parted his lips open, allowing Takanori to slip his warm tongue right into his willing mouth; the brunet wasting no time in claiming Yuu’s mouth as his. Oh, god. It had to be the wine. It _had_ to be the wine. Yuu was so fucking turned on, and his best friend just happened to be seated next to him, and it _had to be goddamn motherfucking wine_. Yuu couldn’t think of anything else but allowing Takanori to have his way with him, and the minute Takanori pushed Yuu down against the leather sofa and increased the pace of his tongue, Yuu was letting slip several deep-throated moans into the hurried kiss, unable to hold back how much he was enjoying the kiss.  
  
“Yuu,” Takanori only pulled back for a loud gasp of air, before diving back in impatiently again, his hands running up desperately into Yuu’s raven hair. His fingernails clawed at Yuu’s long strands of hair, pulling and twirling at each and every one of them, so much so that Yuu was arching his head back in muffled pain. Yuu’s own arms circled around the back of Takanori’s neck, his ebony-painted nails scratching red lines into Takanori’s skin with every entwine of their hot tongues together. Saliva coated their lips and trailed freely down the side of their mouths in a mess, but Yuu couldn’t feel anything else but the feverish lust inside his body. _Fuck_ , Yuu was truly in the mood to get ravaged upon right now, and Takanori was giving him just _that_.  
  
“Takanori,” Yuu let slip a giggly moan into the kiss, almost in delight, and in the next second, Takanori’s lips had left his, relocating itself against Yuu’s neck. The way Takanori’s body was climbing up over Yuu’s body, leaning itself right in and brushing himself across all of Yuu’s sensitive spaces sent Yuu arching his body with want. _Oh_ , was Takanori always so confident and assertive in bed? Wouldn’t Yuu like to find out…  
  
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”  
  
Kouyou’s shocked tone of voice was hard to miss, but somehow in Yuu’s lusty haze, his voice muted right back into the background. Oh, had their lovers finally returned from the kitchen? With his intoxicated vision, Yuu could only catch a misty glimpse of the two older men holding two new wine bottles from Yuu’s position at the sofa, seeing as the raven was far too busy enjoying those skilled lips currently licking upon his neck.  
  
Takanori didn’t seem to pay much attention to the voices calling for him, either, not even Akira’s – the brunet must have drank too much; he was too far gone.  
  
The older men’s conversation didn’t go unheard, though. Yuu was well-aware their drunken acts were now receiving an audience, but the raven-haired was too tipsy to care.  
  
“ _Okay,_ I was not expecting this… this rather… strangely enticing make-out session.”  
  
“I feel like I’m watching lesbian porn. Also, Akira, I didn’t peg you to be the submissive one in the bedroom.”  
  
“Oi, Takashima, Takanori may seem aggressive, but with me, he’s a kitten.”  
  
A loud snort. “Whatever you say, Akira. How long are we going to watch them like this? Your goddamn lover’s dry-humping mine. Will you pull him off? Oi, Takanori!”  
  
“Well _,_ you have to admit it’s kinda hot…”  
  
Akira was _so_ ready to take back those carelessly uttered words in the next second.  
  
“ _Nnngh,_ Taka, you’re so hot,” Yuu couldn’t resist moaning out as Takanori’s hands begun slipping underneath his shirt, the raven’s eyes blissfully rolling up to the back of his head. Yuu’s lips curved up into a sly smile as he turned to his side and locked his eyes with Kouyou’s – and, as expected, were greeted with flaming, ferocious ones, ones that spelled out nothing but pure annoyance and aggravation at the sight of another man pleasuring his lover.  
  
“OK, time-out,” Akira immediately snapped at the noise of pleasure that Yuu just made, deciding enough was enough. He lowered the wine bottle he was holding right onto the ground, before rushing over to the sofa to pull Takanori’s lithe frame off of Yuu. “I don’t know how this happened, but I’m not sure I want to know, either.”  
  
“Such a spoilsport,” Takanori could be heard grumbling, but Akira simply held his lover’s arms back and received the brunet right into his arms. “Put me down! I can walk.”  
  
“Not if you’re just going to make out with any person sitting right next to you,” Akira chided, a disapproving look on his face. Seriously, Takanori was such a wild child it frightened Akira to think of what went on whenever he wasn’t around. “OK, that’s it. I’m keeping the wine. No more drinking for you.”  
  
“It’s New Year’s, loosen up a bit,” Takanori sulked aloud to his older boyfriend, though he didn’t make any further protests as Akira wrapped his arms tightly around him, keeping him a distance away from the raven-haired. He was grateful Akira was understanding enough not to get mad at him for the random make-out session.  
  
Takanori sighed, knowing it wouldn’t be as easy for Yuu to appease Kouyou. “And just in case Kouyou gets mad, let him know I started it.”  
  
Kouyou kept his silence, but even _that_ was telling enough of his irritation. The blond CEO stayed rooted in his spot, his arms folded and his brows furrowed in vexation. Glancing over to Akira, he uttered a displeased grunt and gestured for his vice-president to take his leave.  
  
“Take the spare room down the hallway, the last one on the right,” Kouyou muttered, to which Akira lightly nodded, and understood not to question any further.  
  
“Good night,” Akira said, knowing that Kouyou urgently wanted his alone time with the raven-haired. He had no doubt the blond wasn’t _actually_ mad at his lover for the kiss – Kouyou was simply jealous Yuu would think to kiss someone else other than him, even if it was Yuu’s very own best friend, and Kouyou wanted to hear from Yuu himself that the kiss didn’t mean anything, and that Kouyou had nothing to be worried about.  
  
Akira, on his end, wasn’t easily as fearful, and had long gotten used to Takanori’s drunken tendencies; he was confident Takanori would feel bad for it the next morning and try to make up for it to Akira in his own way, anyway. As for Kouyou, though, the CEO was always so anxious in his love for the raven, and Akira knew Kouyou would only be appeased after having a straight confrontation with his younger, delicate raven-haired lover.  
  
Yuu curled up to himself against the sofa quickly, mewling quietly as he did so, his heavily-lidded eyes struggling to focus on the sight of his angry fiancé standing right in front of him. Once Kouyou heard the sound of a bedroom door slowly creaking to a close, the blond made a loud _tsk_ , and took several steps to his lover until he was seated right next to Yuu’s fragile fetal form.  
  
“You’re mad at me,” Yuu pouted, not resisting as Kouyou placed an arm over him, pulling his raven lover closer to him. “You are, aren’t you?”  
  
“I thought Takanori was your best friend,” Kouyou huffed, clearly disillusioned by what he’d just witnessed earlier. “Or is he going to be a threat to me, now?”  
  
“Of course he’s not,” Yuu placated, allowing Kouyou to slither his arms possessively around him, hugging the smaller raven to himself. Yuu nuzzled his head cutely into the crook of Kouyou’s neck, hoping his little display of affection would soothe some of that anger of Kouyou’s. “It’s New Year’s, we’re drunk, and you’ve given me such a great night so far. We were just having some fun, Kouyouuu.”  
  
Kouyou grew even more unconvinced. “ _Fun_? You make out with other men for fun?! Is that it, Yuu? Do you always make out with Takanori whenever the both of you drink together, and is this some practice that you’ve simply never told me about? I thought we were done with hiding secrets from each other. And now I’m beginning to question just what happened between you and Takanori when you both used to be roommates.”  
  
A frown made its way onto Yuu’s face, knowing this could so quickly escalate into a huge misunderstanding. “Kou, I’m not hiding any secrets from you,” Yuu hurriedly assured, clutching Kouyou’s shirt tightly to himself. Kouyou’s face hardened. “Takanori and I have always been best friends. I swear, we’ve never done anything like this before. It must be from all the drinking. It didn’t mean anything. Takanori even said so, before kissing me. Kou… Won’t you believe me?” Yuu’s voice trailed off in such a disheartened manner it quickly crumbled Kouyou’s angry resolve to bits.  
  
The stone-cold look on Kouyou’s face instantly withered away. He was always so weak to Yuu, after all. He couldn’t ever stay mad for too long at his beautiful flower. Not with that sad, doe-eyed look on his pretty face.  
  
“Of course I believe you,” Kouyou sighed, a hand of his comfortingly rubbing at Yuu’s back. “And I know how Takanori is like. I’m sure the kiss didn’t mean anything. But I didn’t like seeing another man making my fiancé moan like that very much. And you even had the cheek to look at me when you did, just to await for a reaction. You just like riling me up, don’t you?”  
  
Yuu erupted into soft giggles at his lover’s accusation, knowing he wasn’t entirely innocent for wanting to gauge for Kouyou’s reaction. “I didn’t mean it… Are you sure I was looking at you?”  
  
Kouyou frowned, knowing Yuu enjoyed teasing out reactions from him too much. “If I didn’t know any better, I would say… you like purposely making me jealous just for your own self-satisfaction.”  
  
Yuu enclosed his arms up around Kouyou’s neck, wearing a playful, offended expression on his face. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m always so good to you.”  
  
“I know you are,” Kouyou sighed, a hand running up through Yuu’s silky hair. The raven still smelled so good, even after getting so wasted with all that liquor. “But you like watching me get possessive over you, don’t you? You like playing the innocent lamb a little _bit_ too much.” And he knew his lover well enough to state as such. Yuu couldn’t even deny it if he tried to.  
  
“A cute lamb waiting to get devoured by a _wolf_  like you?” Yuu teased, snuggling his body right up to his fiancé. Kouyou grinned silly at Yuu’s kittenish behavior. “Fine, maybe I like how hot you look when you get so possessive over me. But don’t murder Takanori tomorrow morning, okay? I still need a best friend to talk shit to.”  
  
“If Akira’s not keeping a tighter leash on Takanori, I will,” Kouyou snorted, securing a firm grip around Yuu. “No more sleep-overs at Takanori’s place anymore. I’m not allowing it.”  
  
“Hmph, you’re _sooo_ demanding,” Yuu poked at Kouyou’s chest, disgruntled at the news. Yuu knew he wasn’t in any position to object to his decision, though, since he _did_ just engage in a make-out session with Takanori after all. Yuu would have thrown Kouyou out of the house by now, had he been the one to catch Kouyou in the midst of a make-out session with Kouyou’s own best friend.  
  
(Just the mere thought of it made Yuu gag.)  
  
“But I still get to hang out with Takanori, right? Riiight?” Yuu sulked.  
  
Kouyou went into contemplative thought. “I’ll consider it,” he shrugged a moment after, smugness returning quickly to his face when he realized just how obedient Yuu was acting towards him. He had expected the raven-haired to put up a fight at his statement. Then again, Yuu rarely ever protested his decisions – his younger lover always did try his best to make Kouyou happy. “It would help if you _tried_ to convince me.”  
  
Yuu gazed up into Kouyou’s eyes at his suggestive words, his lips spreading into a wry smile at the thought that Kouyou needed some convincing. “Convince you? And _how_ exactly do you want me to do that?”  
  
Kouyou hummed. “I don’t know. It’s up to you. You know me best, don’t you? I have high expectations.”  
  
Yuu grinned. “Oh, you _do_ , don’t you, handsome?” The raven feigned a yawn right afterwards, doing so on purpose just to irk the blond. “Can I convince you tomorrow? I’m tired and ready for bed.”  
  
Kouyou’s face darkened in disappointment immediately, obviously having other plans set for the rest of the night. “Fine. Then the deal’s off. We’ll go to bed.”  
  
“Aw, come on,” Yuu slung his arms up around Kouyou’s neck, staring up wide-eyed into his fiancé’s dark brown eyes. “I was just playing with you. You’ve planned such a sweet New Year’s for me. I had so much fun today.”  
  
Kouyou rolled his eyes, grunting. “Evidently.”  
  
“And I’m not talking about the kiss with Takanori,” Yuu raised his head and rubbed his nose against Kouyou’s in an affectionate, adorable gesture. “I loved the dinner, and the helicopter, and the fireworks, and I loved that you were there by my side throughout all of it. I love spending time with you. I love that you always put in so much thought and effort just to make me happy. I love that you wanted me to have a great time this New Year’s.”  
  
The cold features on Kouyou’s face immediately softened at Yuu’s words, his lips parting to utter quiet whispers to his younger lover. “Of course I want you to have a great time. And I’m glad that you liked the plans I had for today. You’re the love of my life. I want you to be happy, always. It’s going to be a good year for us. We’re going to get married so soon, and then I’ll be your husband. For real. And I can’t believe how lucky I am.” The blond bestowed a kiss gently upon Yuu’s forehead, and Yuu shut his eyes close as he reveled in the kiss.  
  
“You never ask for anything in return,” Yuu murmured, fingers moving up to cup at the sides of Kouyou’s face, tracing at the outline of his jaw. “You’re too good to me.”  
  
“Your happiness is mine, remember?” Kouyou chuckled, eyes lighting up at Yuu’s concern. “You never have to worry about anything when you’re with me. Let me do all the worrying. You just focus on wearing that beautiful smile of yours for me.”  
  
_Even_ in his intoxicated state, Yuu couldn’t hold back the red blush that was emerging onto his face – not that his face wasn’t scarlet enough from all the drinking, already.  
  
“You’re so corny!” Yuu exclaimed, warming his cheeks with his palms, smiling so wide it almost hurt. “I can’t believe I’m marrying you.”  
  
“Did I say anything wrong?” Kouyou sighed, face visibly concerned at Yuu’s outburst. “Should I not have been as blunt? But those are my true thoughts, Yuu.”  
  
“I know they are,” Yuu was almost melting into a pile of goo. “I should have gotten used to this by now. But I’m not!”  
  
“Get used to what?” Kouyou frowned, holding Yuu in his arms. “Did I do something wrong?”  
  
“No, of course not,” Yuu assured, hiding his face in Kouyou’s chest. “You’re just… _Ugh_! You’re unbelievable. I hate how easy you still make me blush, even after we’ve been together for so long.”  
  
_That_ brought a dorky grin to Kouyou’s face. “Ah. Do you need an explanation? That’s because you’re so cute, and that part of you will never change.”  
  
“Just shut up,” Yuu groaned, weakly punching Kouyou in the chest. “You’re so mean to me.”  
  
“I’m not mean,” Kouyou pouted, fingers brushing through Yuu’s hair. “Is it my fault you’re so easy to tease?”  
  
“ _See_ , now you can’t blame me for liking to tease you,” Yuu huffed.  
  
“By kissing another man?” Kouyou narrowed his eyes into slits in response. “Huh, well then. You can begin choosing your funeral outfit tonight.”  
  
Yuu scoffed. “Who’s dying?”  
  
“Takanori, first thing tomorrow morning,” Kouyou smiled simply to Yuu, speaking about it so casually as if he was a natural-born murderer. “If you like, I’ll even let you choose the method of death.”  
  
“How did my fiancé go from corny romantic to deranged serial killer in ten seconds flat?” Yuu gave Kouyou the side-eye. “No harming Takanori, okay?! He’s ¼ of the reason we even got back together after our big fight.”  
  
Kouyou frowned. “Right. I forgot.”  
  
“ _And_ he helped you with the engagement ring.”  
  
“Fine,” Kouyou gave in reluctantly, knowing he couldn’t overlook Takanori’s contributions to their relationship. “I’ll spare him.”  
  
Yuu laughed. “ _So_ charitable. I knew my husband could think reasonably enough.”  
  
“Husband?” Kouyou cocked an eyebrow up, unable to contain his smile. “We’re not officially married yet. I thought I was only your fiancé.”  
  
 “Mmm,” Yuu leaned up to give a short peck to Kouyou’s lips. “Technicalities. We’re going to get married soon enough anyway, so it doesn’t matter.”  
  
“Does it?” Kouyou chuckled, amused. “My wife’s so eager.” His hands roaming down Yuu’s back, palming Yuu’s ass slowly. “But no marriage is complete without sex on the wedding night.”  
  
Yuu snorted at those words. “And whose rule is that?” The raven-haired couldn’t hide the soft whines that begun to leave him, though, as Kouyou’s hands cupped his round bottoms, pinching and rubbing at his fats.  
  
“Your _husband’s_ , of course,” Kouyou declared with pride, hands slipping down into the back of Yuu’s pants. Yuu let out an audible moan this time, the moment Kouyou’s cold palms slapped down around his naked ass cheeks. “I thought you were going to convince me.”  
  
“I thought I already had you convinced,” Yuu protested, wriggling his hips teasingly. “You’ll give in to your poor little wife who did nothing wrong, right?”  
  
“Don’t try to use that innocent card on me,” Kouyou warned, leaning his lips over to the side of Yuu’s neck. He yanked at Yuu’s shirt sleeves with his sharp teeth, pulling them down and exposing Yuu’s bare shoulders, almost threatening to rip the shirt right apart. “ _Oh_ , I was so ready to lunge for Takanori’s throat when his hands went under your shirt. Thinking about it just makes me boil. How _dare_ he touch your skin. All of _this_ is mine.”  
  
And then the shirt was torn into shreds.  
  
Yuu’s eyes widened at Kouyou’s blind anger, but welcomed it when he realized it was just Kouyou’s way of unleashing the steam he had built up inside of him. He allowed Kouyou to hastily strip him of his pants – this time no shredding, thankfully – but the moment Yuu was completely unclothed, Kouyou wasted no time in pinning Yuu right down onto the sofa, bringing him back to the same position he was in before with Takanori. Kouyou sank his head down to Yuu’s shoulders, then began furiously nipping at Yuu’s milky skin with his teeth, reviving old lovemarks with his brutal kisses.  
  
“Kou,” Yuu mewled, hands reaching up to pull at Kouyou’s pale blond hair. “ _Nnn_ … Uunn… You’re still mad.” Oh, Kouyou clearly still was. Yuu could feel the older blond’s displeasure in the urgent way he kissed, and it brought a strange flutter to Yuu’s heart, and an endearing smile to Yuu’s face, at the knowledge that Kouyou was always so transparent in his feelings and love for the raven.  
  
“You’re so cute,” Yuu giggled, in between his wild moans as Kouyou decorated his skin with evidence of his possession. And when Kouyou was finally satisfied with his work, the raven-haired was tugging at Kouyou’s hair, bringing his fiance’s head up to meet his lips.  
  
Kouyou kissed him messily and harshly, teeth biting down on Yuu’s bottom lip to get them to open, tearing another moan from Yuu’s throat. Kouyou wouldn’t let those lips go – he didn’t stop, didn’t even pause for breath, and the force of the kiss almost turned Yuu dizzy. Kouyou’s hand trailed down the front of Yuu’s chest as he kissed, taking a nipple between his finger and thumb, rolling over it, making the small nub of flesh harden, and Yuu mewled helplessly at the feeling, pressing up into Kouyou’s hand. “Unn… _Kou_ …”  
  
Kouyou only smirked at him lightly, before pulling away from their kiss and descending his mouth down his chest instead, causing Yuu to arch up in pleasure at the feeling of that heavenly tongue sucking gently at his sensitive digit. Kouyou bit down, making Yuu let out a cry of pain and pleasure, one that he tried in vain to muffle. “N…No, _K…Kouyou_ …!”  
  
It didn’t take long for the both of them to get fully hard, not forgetting the heavy influence of alcohol they were both under. Kouyou yanked his pants off his legs and tossed them to the floor before impatiently pulling out the bottle of lube from underneath his coffee table, squeezing it all over his fingers and cock, wasting no time in preparing Yuu for the sex he’d been anticipating for the entire night. Yuu pressed his hips up in desperation with every finger of Kouyou’s that slipped right inside of his tight entrance, needing to relieve the aching pressure in his cock, but he knew that Kouyou wouldn’t allow him to do so until Kouyou was fully inside him.  
  
“Be good for me, babydoll,” Kouyou whispered in the silence, voice dripping with utter sex. _God,_ Yuu was so aroused by the older man’s instructions he couldn’t even think. Kouyou fucked Yuu with his fingers fast and rough, eager to _actually_ fuck him, and Yuu did his best to comply, squirming slightly at the feeling, slowly getting used to the slight pain of intrusion.  
  
“Kouyou… _Kouyou_ … Kouyou…” Pressing his head back into the cushion of the sofa, Yuu moaned his lover’s name loudly at the friction Kouyou’s fingers were causing inside of him, stretching and scissoring him wide and ready for Kouyou’s cock. “ _Oh_ … So good… _So good, daddy…_ ”  
  
“Keep on making those noises for me, princess,” Kouyou smugly said, liking what he was hearing, leaning over to place a gentle kiss upon Yuu’s cheek. He pulled out his fingers without warning, but before Yuu could make a whine at the loss, Kouyou was gripping his thighs tightly, spreading them apart for easier access, and sinking in between them, his thick lubed cock pushing slowly right into Yuu.  
  
“ _Uunn_!” Yuu let out a strangled cry, squeezing his eyes shut as he tried his best to adjust to the feeling of Kouyou sheathing himself entirely inside of Yuu. The raven-haired’s face was bright red as he struggled to catch his breath, hazily fluttering his eyes open midway to lock eyes with Kouyou as his lover penetrated him. Yuu wasn’t the only one breathless; Kouyou was perspiring madly himself, breathing deeply as he slid himself inside Yuu’s clenched hole.  
  
“That’s it, babydoll,” Kouyou cooed, almost easing himself fully in now. “Just relax. God, you’re so fucking hot. Look at you. No wonder Takanori couldn’t resist you when you were under him. You’re just ready to be ravaged. It’s so easy to take advantage of you, do you know that?” Once Kouyou was balls-deep, filling Yuu right up to the brim, the blond had a pleased look on his face, his nails sinking right into the sides of Yuu’s hips, and his soft, supple skin. “But no one else will ever get to fuck you like this but me. Isn’t that right, my pretty little flower? Your body belongs to me.”  
  
The blond began moving inside of him, sliding in and out of the raven, alternating between slow and fast thrusts, constantly keeping Yuu on the edge, and Yuu couldn’t stop the long stream of moans flowing from his mouth, though Yuu was painfully aware they weren’t alone in the penthouse as they usually were, and they had guests over. It was so hard to focus on that, though, _so_ hard, when Yuu couldn’t see and feel anything else but the pleasurable feeling of Kouyou’s cock ramming _hard_ into him.  
  
“You’re _so good,_ so fast… _Unnn_ … _daddy_ , I’ll cum,” Yuu sobbed, squeezing his thighs purposefully around Kouyou’s cock, an action that sends Kouyou groaning satisfiedly. “ _Oh_ … oh… _oh that’s it daddy,_ just fuck me hard right there…!”  
  
“I’m going to show you what happens when Daddy catches you fooling around with other men,” Kouyou hissed, pulling out of Yuu without notice. Flipping Yuu over, he pulled Yuu up from the sofa, demanding him raspily to get on all fours. “Don’t make daddy wait, babydoll.”  
  
Yuu made a noise akin to a spoilt mewl at Kouyou’s sudden harshness, but submitted to his instructions meekly, arching his body in such a way that he was curving and showing his perky ass right off to his lover. Once Yuu was in position, Kouyou was gripping his hips tightly again, sliding himself back inside of Yuu, this time more easily.  
  
“ _Nnngh,_ so big, fuck…” Yuu bit down against his lip, moaning, knowing his words would do wonders for Kouyou’s ego, and hopefully lead him to release faster. Burying his head down into the leather of the sofa, Yuu was reduced nothing more but a trembling frame as Kouyou thrusted into him fast and hard from behind, with the raven trembling to push against him in a faint attempt to meet his movements. Yuu’s moans escalated as Kouyou found that perfect angle inside of him, one that had him brushing Yuu’s prostate with almost every thrust, and Yuu screamed out with pleasure with the very first hit, and every consecutive hit afterwards.  
  
“Fuck, babydoll, you’re so fucking hot,” Kouyou groaned out, unable to will himself to stop in his furious momentum. “Look at you, you look so fucking hot like this shaking underneath me, _fuck_!”  
  
“ _God,_ yes, fuck me like this, _fuck_ , _daddy_ you’re so good to me! _Dadddyyy…_!” Yuu cried out, shifting himself back with Kouyou’s every thrust, receiving Kouyou’s cock deeper, turning into a loud moaning mess, his arms shaking as his prostate is hit yet again. Fuck, Yuu was so fucking close to his limit, and _so_ ready to cum…  
  
“SHUT THE FUCK UP!”  
  
Takanori’s voice was unmistakable from the distance, yelling all the way from where he was in the bedroom, the sound of his exasperated voice paralyzing both Yuu and Kouyou instantly. “SOME PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO SLEEP!”  
  
There was also the muffled voice of Akira’s in the background, seemingly attempting to pacify his grumpy, sleepless lover, but it didn’t seem to work, for Takanori was giving one last annoyed yell before finally fading into silence. “AKI THEY’VE BEEN GOING AT IT FOREVER! I SWEAR TO GOD!”  
  
Yuu wasn’t sure why, but the very first reaction of his was to erupt into playful giggles, quickly breaking the heated sexual tension that was between him and his blond lover just moments before. Or, _well,_ Takanori had broken it just seconds ago, so it wasn’t Yuu’s fault, really. Goddamn Takanori. Yuu couldn’t even bring himself to get mad at his best friend, knowing it was so typical of Takanori to do so. Takanori must have collapsed into slumber just after Akira tucked him into bed awhile ago, and Yuu knew Takanori was never much of a heavy sleeper. Yuu wasn’t surprised Takanori got woken up by Yuu and Kouyou’s… _endeavours,_ seeing as they were being pretty loud themselves. He was _certain_ about being teased to death the next morning by Takanori about how vocal he and Kouyou had been last night; they had gotten so used to each other’s company at night that they’d forgotten how to be quiet with guests over. Thank god Kouyou had built-in soundproof walls to keep any neighbours from listening to them.  
  
Kouyou burst into low chuckles himself at Takanori’s random outburst, his brown eyes fondfully gazing to his giggling mess of a lover. Yuu was _so_ cute. Bending over to plant a sweet kiss upon Yuu’s hair, he pulled out of Yuu slowly, treating Yuu as gently as he possibly could before turning Yuu back around to face him. He carried Yuu’s lean frame up into his lap, a cheeky grin on his face.  
  
“Ride me,” Kouyou’s eyes twinkled down to Yuu’s with a mischievous smile. “Give Takanori more reason to lose his sleep. I’ll consider this enough payback for what he did earlier – kissing and touching what’s _mine_.”  
  
Yuu uttered a soft laugh at his lover’s method of revenge. “You’re so bad,” the raven lovingly chastised, but he complied with Kouyou’s instructions anyway, silently liking the way Kouyou was so protective over him whenever he got jealous.  
  
Kouyou leaned back against the sofa and took a seat this time, beckoning for Yuu to climb atop him and straddle his lap. Yuu felt the older man’s rough hands circle around his waist and hoist him up briefly, positioning the raven-haired right atop his cock. As Yuu spread his slim legs apart and slid himself expertly down onto Kouyou’s leaking erection, sweet, blissful groans left both of their lips at the same time, succumbing weakly to the pleasurable feeling of filling and being filled.  
  
“ _Nnnn_ , Kouyou daddy…” Yuu moaned, savouring the feeling of Kouyou’s entire cock plunged deep inside of him for a brief moment. Then he was lifting himself up slightly, his eyes fluttering to a pleasurable close and his teeth clenching at the delicious drag of Kouyou’s cock pulling a distance out of his ass, before allowing his meaty ass to fall back down around Kouyou’s cock, his muscles tightening around it as he did so. He gave a few more slow experimental thrusts similar to this, pushing himself up and sliding himself back down, teasing Kouyou to the point where pre-cum began dribbling down the sides of his cock, clearly impatient for Yuu to begin riding him whorishly like he usually did.  
  
“Babydoll, _faster_ ,” Kouyou cursed, mouth parted open in a low groan as Yuu started increasing his pace, elevating his speed, the fats of his ass jiggling and slapping crudely against Kouyou’s thighs, producing vulgar noises of evidence of sex in the silence. “That’s it… _fuck_ … babydoll, that’s how you fuck yourself against daddy’s cock…”  
  
“S–So good,” Yuu moaned out, slowly going weak-kneed with pleasure by the second. Kouyou had his hands placed around Yuu’s curvy hips, and he was guiding Yuu down onto his cock with every thrust, making sure he was hitting all the right spots in Yuu and driving his cock in as deeply as he could inside of the raven. “ _Oh… Oh… Oh…_ I’m such a slut for daddy… _Uunnn…_ Deserve to be punished… Good-for-nothing… _Fuck_ … Daddy, just fuck me…”  
  
Kouyou had to hold himself back from ejaculating completely as soon as he heard his princess dirty-talking to himself. _Fuck_. Since when did Yuu learn to do that? Kouyou was so turned on by Yuu’s whorish behavior right now the older man was almost losing his mind. He thrusted up harder and rougher into Yuu’s body, aiming for Yuu’s prostate each time, his lips curling up into a smirk each time he brushed against it and elicited a shameless cry from Yuu’s lewd mouth. _Take that, Takanori_. He was certain the brunet wouldn’t be able to sleep a wink tonight – and unfortunately Akira wouldn’t be able to, too. Well, he’d figure out a way to make up for it to his best friend later. What was important right now was fucking Yuu until his voice became hoarse, and tainting Yuu with every evidence of his cum.  
  
Digging his nails into the sides of Yuu’s hips, Kouyou was particularly brutal when he spoke, slamming his cock right up into Yuu with each word he uttered.  
  
“Tell Daddy who’s a slut.”  
  
Kouyou’s dark eyes greedily took in the sight before him, admiring the tortured expression on Yuu’s face, the way those luscious lips parted to give way to obscene moans, and the perfect sensual curves of his naked lover’s ever-moving body. Yuu didn’t hesitate to answer, his long raven hair sticking to the side of his face in a pile of sweat, tears almost running down his cheeks at the insane pleasure that he felt as he continuously worked his ass up and down Kouyou’s leaking cock.  
  
“Me, _daddy_! It’s me, Yuu’s been such a bad slut for daddy’s cock… _ah…_ ah… _uunn_ … fuck…! _You feel so good_ , Kouyou…!” And _god,_ Yuu meant it. The way the tight walls of his muscles resisted every inch of Kouyou’s delicious cock as it wedged itself demandingly inside of Yuu brought such pleasure to the raven he could _cry_. He was so close to his release now, he could feel it.  
  
The blond gave him an especially hard thrust at the sound of his answer, pleased with what he’d just heard.  
  
“No more kissing other men, especially Takanori,” Kouyou growled, not pausing in his frenzied fucking of the raven, sliding his cock in so deep Yuu forgot to breathe.  
  
“No more,” Yuu cried out, arms wrapping around Kouyou’s neck tightly for support, his own erection straining so hard against his stomach, already beginning to spill with cum.  
  
“No more drinking second glasses of wine with anyone else, except for me,” Kouyou snapped, and Yuu was quickly nodding his head, his eyes shut and his drunken cheeks blushing, incoherent sounds and babbles leaving his mouth as he struggled to convey his agreement clearly to the blond.  
  
“Only with you, I promise,” Yuu sobbed out, riding the rest of his release out against Kouyou’s cock, clenching around it as he did so. The orgasm took the both of them like a tidal wave. With one loud final groan, Kouyou swiftly followed after, grinding up into Yuu’s tight hole until he had milked himself entirely inside of Yuu.  
  
They took several moments to regain their breath, listening to their heavy breathing in the silence, their bodies slumped against each other’s on the sofa. A quick turn to the digital clock on the wall showed Kouyou that it was already nearing four a.m, and that they were _way_ past their usual bedtime. Suddenly the blond CEO was concerned he had overworn Yuu out – his concerned eyes flickered over to Yuu in a glance as his lips began planting soft kisses down the side of Yuu’s hair.  
  
“Fall asleep against me,” Kouyou said softly. “I’ll carry you back to bed, no worries.”  
  
Yuu clung onto Kouyou’s half-buttoned shirt tightly, still attempting to catch his breath. His voice came out in a soft murmur, uttering the very first thing the came to his mind.  
  
“Takanori and Akira are not going to let us live this down tomorrow morning, you know that?”  
  
Kouyou chuckled. “Yuu, they’re sleeping in _my_ house. I do whatever the fuck I want around here, and they’re not going to say anything about it.”  
  
Yuu smiled briefly, hugging his lover close to him. “Mmm. You’re so hot when you’re aggressive.”  
  
“You forget I’m Takashima Kouyou,” Kouyou teased. “And I pay Akira his goddamn wages.”  
  
“You’re turning me on again right now,” Yuu giggled, his eyes almost closing, discernibly exhausted. “I haven’t told you how much I appreciated your New Year’s surprise for me.”  
  
“You already did,” Kouyou assured, attempting to coax Yuu quickly into sleep. “You told me that awhile ago, babydoll.”  
  
“But I really liked it,” Yuu mewled, afraid Kouyou didn’t grasp his gratitude fully. “I really loved tonight.”  
  
“I’m happy you did, my little flower. You know I’m happy if you’re happy,” Kouyou gave a gentle smile to his lover. “Now go to sleep, alright?”  
  
“The new year’s going to be a blast for us,” Yuu mumbled, sleepily, head finally falling down against Kouyou’s chest. “We’re going to get married. And have kids.”  
  
“Kids?” Kouyou laughed, wondering when that plan had come into place. “Not so soon, babydoll. You’ve not even graduated yet.”  
  
“Soon enough,” Yuu sniffed, waving his hands. “Technicalities.”  
  
And then he finally drifted off to sleep.  
  
Kouyou smiled affectionately down to his younger lover, arms sliding across Yuu’s smaller frame.  
  
“Happy new year, sweetheart,” he whispered, taking a moment to bask in the exciting prospects of the upcoming new year.  
  
And what a great new year it was going to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy new year everyone!!!!! I wish nothing but health, happiness and success for all of you reading this in 2016 <3
> 
> This 50th chapter was planned awhile ago -- I just didn't ever have time to get around to writing it. New year's was the perfect time to write it out. And yes, I wanted the Aoiki make-out sesh to happen ;^; I'm sorry. I just thought it was too cute not to write out. I mean, come on, they're best friends, they're both attractive, and Aoiki is cute as hell. (It didn't mean anything! :D Takanori is just a wild child and Yuu's a slut. :D) And Akira got turned on watching it lol. P sure Kouyou did too but he's never going to 'fess up to it :D And also yes. Helicopters. I keep wondering why I never mentioned helicopters in all 49 chapters of my fic? Kouyou's rich as hell. He could afford his own private jet if he wanted to. XD
> 
> I think people were expecting something more like an epilogue for the 50th chapter, so sorry if you guys were waiting for a wedding. XD I haven't decided if I'll actually write that out. But if I write a 51st chapter then my OCD will make me write 9 more XDDD We'll see. I'm still busy with my last semester of school so ;^; Gonna peace out a bit after updating this.
> 
> It's been such a blast writing SA. I think I've said all I wanted to say in my A/N in the last chapter. But I'm just so happy you guys are still keeping track/following this story. I'm not sure I'll ever be able to let SA go. Maybe I won't. XD
> 
> Your comments, as always, mean so much to me. <3 I hope you guys enjoyed this last laaast bit of SA. I can't get enough of SA Uruaoi and Reituki ;A; See you guys soon, whenever that may be <3
> 
> ~~SA is finally completed!!!!!!!~~
> 
> P.S: you can download the entire fic in PDF form in the 'Download' button above! <3


	51. the Office: Side-story II

They had settled on Chinese for dinner tonight, in an authentic, classy restaurant, instead of some cheap phoney takeaway; and it was over the muted chatters of the rich patrons here that Kouyou’s anxious voice rang through, his face taking on a pensive look, stress lines forming over his brows, coupled with the excessive grinding of his teeth. He clutched his phone closer to his ear, speaking in hushed, urgent tones over the line, desperately trying not to worry his gorgeous fiancé who was only seated opposite him.  
   
Yuu picked at the dim sum dishes with his chopsticks, grabbing for a dumpling now and then and nibbling upon it slowly in his mouth, evidently silent now that his partner was distracted with his phone call. It wasn’t that the food was bad – it was _exquisite_ , as were all meals that Yuu had with Kouyou, since his well-to-do fiancé only frequented the best restaurants, ones that lived up to his fine tastes. Yuu wasn’t quite sure when was the last time he went to a fast food restaurant anymore, not even with Takanori, who had long gotten spoilt with Akira’s equally expensive treatment.  
   
Yuu understood perfectly that the love of his life held a supreme and demanding position at work, one that meant Kouyou had to pick up important calls even during dinner, so he’d never lamented about it. He only worried over how much those phone calls appeared to rile Kouyou up, though; Kouyou was known to be strict and assertive when it came to matters of his work, and Yuu sometimes worried if it would eventually take a toll on his mental health. Yuu was simply glad that he was here, and available, for Kouyou to lean on whenever the blond needed some rest. Contrary to popular belief, CEOs needed to be pampered themselves, too. And Yuu did all the right pampering, in all the right places, _with_ all the right techniques.  
   
“…Just settle it, Akira, OK?” Kouyou responded back in a tone of annoyance over the phone, his irksome words causing Yuu to flinch a little. Yikes. That was harsh. Yuu sometimes wondered how Akira could withstand Kouyou’s taxing, gruelling personality when it came to work, but Yuu figured men like them were probably used to taking attitudes and snappy remarks in their line of work. When it came to Kouyou’s personal affairs, Kouyou _never_ spoke so harshly with the raven-haired.  
   
“When I handed this over to you, I trusted you alone enough to see it through. I don’t really have time to look through a hundred applicants and make a decision of my own, you know that. You’ll find a way to settle this, OK, Akira? You’ll pull some strings somewhere; I know you will. Get someone by Monday for me. No extensions.”  
   
And then the line was cut. With a tap of a button, Kouyou ended the conversation abruptly with an irate scowl, then tossed his phone across the dinner table, finally reaching for his pair of chopsticks in a huff and digging in to half-cold food.  
   
Yuu continued chewing on the dumpling in his mouth, then hurriedly swallowed it, his eyes wide open to his lover in an innocent, deer-like stare. Yuu waited in silence, watching as Kouyou sucked in one, two, three deep breaths and paced his anger from within, before lifting his head once more and breaking his lips into a forced, tense smile to his lover, in a bid to appear more welcoming and _sane_.  
   
“The food’s getting cold,” Yuu returned a soft smile, wanting to show that he was perfectly understanding of the nature of Kouyou’s work, promptly picking up a dumpling and lowering it onto Kouyou’s plate. “You should hurry eat up.”  
   
Kouyou soon looked apologetic at Yuu’s tender gesture, knowing he had spent the first thirty minutes of their dinner date caught up in a serious work conversation with Akira over the phone. He picked the dumpling up with his chopsticks and stuffed it into his mouth, furiously chewing against it and gulping it down his throat.  
   
“I’m sorry, babydoll, work has been such a pain in the ass recently. Not like it wasn’t ever, but.” Kouyou offered up a sorry smile to the raven. “I’m sorry I spent so much time discussing about work when I could have used it talking to you.”  
   
Yuu brushed it off, shaking his head. “You know I don’t mind. I love you, and I know how important work is to you. Want to let off some of that steam to me? I’m sure you terrified Akira just by hanging up on him like that.”  
   
Kouyou let out a chuckle at Yuu’s naivety. “Yuu, Akira’s handled worse from me. I chose him to be my vice-president for a reason. He’s tough enough to handle all the shit I throw his way.”  
   
“I thought you just closed a big project last week,” Yuu sighed in concern, picking up more food and placing it back down onto Kouyou’s plate for him to eat. “I thought your load would be lighter now.”  
   
Kouyou shook his head with a grim look, finally deciding to divulge further. “I have new projects coming up. What’s worse is that – remember Chiaki? My secretary? She just started her paid maternity leave, four months tops, and I don’t have anyone to stand in for her. I left the interviewing process to Akira, and he had gotten me a replacement last week before Chiaki left, but about five minutes ago he called to inform me that the replacement wasn’t available anymore – she got into some freak accident or something – and he’s having trouble getting someone on such a short notice.”  
   
“Oh,” Yuu noted, nodding in contemplative thought. “So _that’s_ why you’re so upset.”  
   
“It’s a not a job that anyone can do,” Kouyou shrugged. “I don’t blame Akira, really. I know it’s demanding, to be the secretary of a CEO of a big corporation. And it’s especially demanding to be _my_ secretary. Chiaki has toughened up for the job over the years, and that’s why she’s so good at it. But it’s going to be hard for me to work without a personal assistant, since I’d relied on Chiaki to keep all of my appointments and business meetings in order, and I’m not sure if I’ll be able to juggle all of that on my own, on top of my own existing workload.”  
   
The older man raked a hand through his blond hair in an aggravated manner. “That’s why I’m putting so much pressure on Akira to get me a personal assistant by Monday. By hook or by crook, he’ll _have_ to find a way to get me one.”  
   
Yuu frowned, not liking the thought of Kouyou being stressed out even more than he already was. “You poor thing,” the raven-haired murmured, placing his pair of chopsticks down, deciding to reach out to take Kouyou’s hand into his instead, his thumb stroking past Kouyou’s skin gently in an attempt to comfort him. “My poor baby always has so much to deal with at work.”  
   
Kouyou noticeably calmed down after that, a small smile curving up upon Kouyou’s lips at Yuu’s sweet gesture. “And _that_ is why I have my pretty little princess here to keep me sane every day after work.”  
   
Yuu grinned at the compliment, holding in his blush – he’d had enough practice over the years to get used to Kouyou’s embarrassing antics – as Kouyou brought Yuu’s hand up to his lips, allowing the blond to bestow a soft, tender kiss upon Yuu’s slender fingers. Even if they were already set to get married in half a year’s time, even if they had been dating long enough to be past their honeymoon stage; Yuu had never felt like they’d ever broken away from that stage of theirs. Kouyou still kissed his hand, like he always did from day one, and Kouyou still pampered Yuu and took care of his every whim and fancy – _not_ that Yuu had ever been a demanding lover. Yuu really couldn’t have gotten any luckier with Kouyou.  
   
“Anyway, enough about work,” Kouyou cleared his throat, his stiff face completely loosening its creases and giving way to a happier, more hopeful stance. Yuu _always_ made him so much happier. “Let’s talk about us. And you. How are the wedding preparations coming along?”  
   
Kouyou had left most of the wedding planning decisions up to Yuu himself, though the blond still did put in effort in deciding some things. It wasn’t that Kouyou had no interest in their wedding; Kouyou did, _god_ , he loved Yuu more than anything and wished he could be there for every part of the process, but Kouyou had his own work to settle, and his job kept him busy enough, so the both of them had decided that the bigger parts of the wedding planning would be left up to Yuu, whose opinions Kouyou prioritised more anyway. Kouyou did love the idea of marriage, sure, and holding a wedding would be the cherry on top of the cake, but what was most important for him was his fiancé’s happiness, and he wanted to make sure the wedding they had was something that fulfilled every one of Yuu’s wildest dreams.  
   
Yuu spent his time now juggling school along with intense wedding preparations, preparations that Yuu would decide upon with that top-notch wedding planner that Kouyou had hired for the both of them. Every night before they went to bed, Yuu would make sure to fill Kouyou in on new potential plans and ideas for their upcoming wedding, and Kouyou would agree to every one of them, just so as long Yuu liked it. Kouyou wanted to give Yuu everything.  
   
“It’s going great!” Yuu answered, lips uncontrollably spreading into an excited smile, a sight that Kouyou was delighted to see. “Nothing much has changed from what I told you last night. Takanori came over this afternoon with more wedding magazines he curated, and we all spent some time with the wedding planner deciding on the type of flowers we wanted to use to decorate the venue.”  
   
“I thought we were settling on red roses,” Kouyou laughed. The older man was known to gift Yuu bouquets of blood-red roses on their dates back when he’d still been courting Yuu, and even now and then Kouyou _still_ surprised Yuu on random occasions with his usual bouquets of roses, so much so that Yuu had wanted their wedding to show off that important aspect of their relationship.  
   
“Well, yeah, but…” Yuu’s shoulder slumped, a troubled look on his face, looking completely miserable. “Then Takanori said that purple’s the ‘in’ colour these days, and it goes perfectly with our skin tones or something, and we should _seriously_ consider to wear purple flowers as our brooches. And if so, then red roses wouldn’t fit the theme so well.”  
   
Kouyou had to stifle a laugh at how gravely distressed Yuu looked. He adored the fact that Yuu was investing so much time in the planning of their wedding; he adored how important every little thing seemed to matter to the raven-haired. It warmed his heart to know Yuu valued the idea of their wedding – _marriage_ – so seriously, and the knowledge that Yuu was looking forward to their wedding as much as Kouyou did greatly comforted the older blond.  
   
“Purple sounds great,” Kouyou hummed, smiling fondfully to his fiancé.  
   
“But those red roses really do mean a lot to us,” Yuu pursed his lips together tightly. “What do you think?”  
   
Kouyou uttered another laugh. “Mmm… I don’t know a lot about fashion, since I’m contented enough sticking to my work suits, but we’re not exactly putting on a fashion show, are we, babydoll? Red roses have always suit you. That’s why they’re the flowers I always gift you, see.” And then the blond’s hand was reaching over to Yuu’s face and his fingers were tucking Yuu’s loose hair strands back behind his ears, Kouyou’s eyes gazing to Yuu in an affectionate, endearing look.  
   
“So, we’re deciding on red roses, then?” Yuu asked, bright-eyed.  
   
“It’s up to you, princess,” Kouyou smiled. “But I’d go with the one with more meaning.”  
   
“Takanori will be crushed, but OK,” Yuu quickly beamed at the decision made. “I think I like what you’re going for. Ah, I just wish you had more time to plan with me on this wedding.”  
   
Kouyou’s heart squeezed immediately at his words, a pang of guilt gutting him straight in the stomach. He knew just how much the wedding meant to the both of them, and he wished he had more time to spend simply sitting down with the love of his life and deciding on matters pertaining to their wedding, too. But these were ‘frivolous’ matters as compared to the work he had to deal with for his job, and Kouyou knew he couldn’t afford to dump his career momentarily aside just for a wedding.  
   
“You know I trust all your decisions, Yuu,” Kouyou’s voice came out upset; upset enough to warrant a concerned look from the raven-haired. “I’m sorry I can’t be there with you every step of the way to decide on matters like these. I’m annoyed at my work, too, for taking me away like this–”  
   
“Kou, it’s okay,” Yuu rushed to intervene, afraid he had mistakenly made it sound as if he was blaming Kouyou for not being able to be there for him. “We’ve known each other for so long, and I know you’re truly busy with your work. If anything, it’s _my_ fault for choosing a CEO in the first place to get married to.”  
   
Kouyou shot him a playful look, not liking the way Yuu had worded it. He leaned over and bumped their noses together, pecking Yuu sneakily against the the lips. “Marrying a CEO has its perks too, you know.”  
   
“I know,” Yuu laughed, drawing apart from Kouyou’s face, mischievous eyes gazing up into Kouyou’s ones. “I’ve been to three different countries in the past year. On a private jet. And I’ve flown in a helicopter to watch fireworks. On New Year’s Eve. And my wedding’s going to be completely insane and blown out-of-proportion, because my fiancé won’t settle for anything less. _And_ I haven’t had fast food in, let me see, a record five months now?”  
   
Kouyou crossed his arms together, displeased, feigning a look of hurt at the things that _hadn’t_ been mentioned. “And?”  
   
“That’s about it,” Yuu teased, but the dirty look that Kouyou gave him was enough for him to retract that statement. “Alright. _Maybe_ I also get to keep a deliciously handsome CEO who is an over-the-top romantic, who loves me unconditionally, and treats me better than anyone ever will. I also get to hug that delicious piece of body every night to sleep. Let’s also not forget the crazy, out-of-the-world sex. I’m probably the luckiest man in the world to be marrying Takashima Kouyou.”  
   
Kouyou was grinning so wide it was almost beginning to hurt. “You’re wrong. _I’m_ the luckiest man in the world, so don’t you dare claim that position of mine.”  
   
“As future husband of mine, you’re obliged to always give in to me,” Yuu cheekily pointed out.  
   
Kouyou chuckled. “That’s _not_ fair. You know I’m already whipped for you.”  
   
Yuu giggled. “Precisely. I’m your princess, _right_?” The raven-haired winked to the blond, clucking his tongue as he did so.  
   
Kouyou rolled his eyes, smiling, knowing he couldn’t dispute that. “You know just how much power you have over me.”  
   
“You voluntarily signed up for a lifetime with me,” Yuu sang. “Do I sense regret?”  
  
“Who said I was backing out,” Kouyou laughed. “You forget the kind of man I am, Yuu. You may have power over me _here_ ,” the blond gestured to his heart, and the raven-haired softly smiled in return. “But…”  
   
“But?” Yuu raised an eyebrow.  
   
“You forget who’s in charge every night in bed,” Kouyou said smugly.  
   
Yuu stuck out a tongue. “Only because I allow it.”  
   
“Only because you _like_ it,” Kouyou teased, and Yuu had a look of mock horror on before he fell silent into a peaceful protest, refusing to say another word to his cocky fiancé until Kouyou was pulling Yuu into his arms and attacking him with a multitude of butterfly kisses again.  
   
~  
   
Yuu turned up at Akira’s office two days after, a thick file in hand as he remained seated on the sofa outside. He’d spent two hours in the morning getting ready for his big interview, having made an appointment with Akira’s secretary to see the vice-president. He’d given a fake name instead of his real _Shiroyama Yuu_ , knowing that Akira would _never_ agree to see him for an interview otherwise. Yuu patted down the sides of his black pants, hoping he looked presentable enough for the interview. Yuu wasn’t too used to dressing formally for occasions such as these, and he only had Kouyou’s usual work outfit to look at for inspiration for this.  
   
Thankfully for Yuu, though, ever since he’d gotten together with Kouyou, the blond had been adamant on changing up Yuu’s wardrobe, and he frequently took Yuu out for shopping at branded outlets and splurged on many pairs of smart-looking dress shirts, as well as matching pants, all for him. Kouyou took Yuu out to more gala events and conventions now, as his companion; and so Yuu often had to forgo his usual, more comfortable hoodies and tight jeans, and get fitted for suits that made him look twice as mature, much older than he really was.  
   
Today, however, Yuu made sure to tone it down a little. The raven-haired had emulated Kouyou’s usual dressing, and had found a white dress shirt in his closet that fit him perfectly. Yuu even made sure to look smarter than usual by pulling out his thick, black-rimmed glasses, and tying his shoulder-length hair up into a high ponytail, leaving just a few wisps of stray hairs framing his face. He’d done some light make-up – black eyeliner was still his go-to – but only enough to accentuate his dark eyes behind his thick glasses. Yuu had stared at himself in the mirror awhile ago, unable to believe how different he looked when he was attired like a real, authentic salary worker, instead of the shabbily-dressed university student Yuu usually was. Akira wouldn’t recognize him at first glance for sure.  
   
“Yukimura Mizuki,” the woman – whom Yuu guessed was Akira’s secretary – sitting at the reception called, looking straight to the raven-haired. It took Yuu a second to realize he was being spoken to, suddenly remembering the fake name he’d registered himself under just to secure an interview with Akira. “Mr. Suzuki’s ready for you.”  
   
Yuu simply nodded in response, got up from his seat, and readied himself to enter Akira’s office.  
   
He was either going to get incarcerated, _or…_ well, get incarcerated.  
   
~  
   
It eventually took Akira a full ten-minutes to realize the man standing in front of him was his best friend’s fiancé, and his boyfriend’s best friend. Considering it took eight-minutes for Akira to turn his head from the stack of documents he held in his hand, to _actually_ looking at Yuu head-on, though, Yuu wasn’t all that surprised.  
   
“Mizuki, take a seat,” Akira had uttered, gesturing to the chair before him. Yuu shuffled in quietly, plopping himself down onto the comfortable black chair, mentally taking in how large Akira’s office was. Akira and Kouyou’s office were similar in size and layout, but they were vastly different in design. While Kouyou preferred keeping his office in monochrome hues and aesthetically pleasing furniture, Akira appeared to be fond of leaving curious-looking trinkets and ornaments lying around, ones that he’d probably collected from trips around the world.  
   
“So,” Akira had continued, still concentrated on signing off on his paperwork at his desk, not even bothering to offer a glance up to the man he was interviewing. “You’re here to fill in a secretarial position, am I correct? It’ll be counted as an internship, since you’re still in university, or so I heard from my PA.”  
   
Yuu swallowed hard, wondering if _now_ was the right time to answer and break his disguise. But he’d spent the entire time in this room so far keeping his silence, and he was certain Akira had grown suspicious – or would soon grow suspicious – of how quiet he was acting.  
   
“It’d be an internship, yes,” Yuu murmured in a tone much lower than his usual voice, hoping Akira wouldn’t catch on to his identity too quick. “I’ve spoken to my college about it, and they’re willing to give me college credit for taking up such a position here.”  
   
_Wait_ , Akira thought to himself. _That – that sounded like –_  
   
When Akira ceased the frantic signing of his documents and dropped his pen down, lifting his head up to confirm his doubts over the true identity of his interviewee, the stoic expression on Akira’s face quickly melted off into shock at the sight of his best friend’s fiancé seated before him.  
   
Damn. Yuu had thought his disguise would work better than this.  
   
“Jesus fucking Christ, Yuu,” Akira was groaning out loud, leaning back against his chair, his hands moving up to cup at his forehead in explicit horror. “Yuu, Kouyou is going to _kill_ me.”  
   
A huge pout formed on Yuu’s face. “But Akira–”  
   
“No, Yuu, you don’t understand. He’s going to _kill_ me. Kill with a capital K. He’s never going to take you as his secretary, Yuu. Go home and spare both of us the misery, alright?”  
   
Yuu winced at the instant rejection, crossing his arms together with a spoilt huff. There was no way he was backing down so soon. Yuu had spent so much time building up the _courage_ to come up here to take up the position, and there was no way Akira was going to drive him out that easily.  
   
“You won’t even give me a chance! I can do the job as well as Chiaki, I’m sure I can, you just have to give me the chance to let me try–”  
   
“Yuu, sweetheart,” Akira silenced the distraught raven-haired in an instant with his patronizing tone. The older man glanced over to Yuu, giving him a once-over look, still in disbelief at the kind of formal look Yuu was wearing. He had to give Yuu an A+ effort, at the very least.  
   
“This isn’t just a secretarial position for some random manager in the company. This is for _Kouyou_ , the CEO of the entire goddamn company. He has a 24/7 schedule, and this is a very, _very_ , demanding job. You’re engaged to Kouyou; you know how busy he is. You’re going to have to keep diaries, arrange appointments, schedule and attend meetings, create agendas, deal with never-ending telephone calls and email enquiries, create and maintain filing systems, and on top of that – you still have your wedding planning to handle, don’t you? I’m not saying you’re not up to it, but…”  
   
Yuu’s eyes lowered to the table, looking disheartened by the news – Akira didn’t look too inclined to hire him for the job. “Akira, I know it’ll be tough, but I want to do this for Kouyou. He’s so stressed out by work, and you guys need someone to fill in for Chiaki, so why not let me do it? It’s only for four months, tops. Plus, this means I get to be around Kouyou more often, and if I’m the only one around here who’s able to relax Kouyou, perhaps all that stress would ease up a little. Anyway, the wedding planning’s going on smoothly, and I have faith I’ll be able to juggle both with my _amazing_ time coordinating skills.”  
   
Akira heaved a sigh, knowing Yuu was obstinate by nature and wouldn’t give in anytime soon. “Yuu, even if I agree to this, Kouyou’s not going to. You know how protective he is of you. He knows first-hand how stressful being his personal assistant is, and he’ll never make you take up a job like this. Hell, he doesn’t even like the idea of you working while you’re studying, does he? Kouyou pampers you way too much.”  
   
Yuu sulked outwardly. Akira _definitely_ knew his best friend inside out. “Precisely, Akira! He pampers me too much, and I just want to do something for him, for once. I know my experience isn’t much, but I’ve had administrative jobs before. I’ll still need some guidance in the beginning, but I’m sure if you let me try, I could do it. And I know you need someone to do this job, Akira, and you need someone fast. If there are no other viable options right now, why not let me do it?”  
   
Akira’s face looked grim. Yuu was right; Akira had his own pile of work to deal with, and he had been interviewing several candidates in the past few days, but none had seemed too suitable for the job – even for a temporary stint. Kouyou had given Akira a deadline to find _someone_ for him by Monday, and if the vice-president couldn’t, he’d have to face Kouyou’s wrath either way. It was already Friday, anyway, and Akira had been banking on the hopes that this Mizuki person might be a perfect fit for Kouyou.  
   
In this case, _too_ perfect. To the point where they were getting married. _Fuck._  
   
“Come on, Akira,” Yuu pleaded, leaning forward on his desk and beseeching him with imploring eyes. “Come onnn. Do it for me. Please. I’ll put in a good word to Takanori about you. _Anything_. Please.”  
   
Akira massaged his forehead with his index finger and his thumb, knowing this would be the worst decision he’d be making in the past ten years of his life. Plus, was he really ready to get cremated by Kouyou the following Monday morning?  
   
“Yuu, if we do this, Kouyou’s going to be mad at me. And you. At the both of us.”  
   
“I’m prepared to get on my knees in his office and suck him off,” Yuu immediately blurted out, sending Akira’s face paling quickly. Yuu cupped a hand over his mouth to hide a giggle after he realized what he’d just revealed. “Oops.”  
   
“I’m staying away from his office completely on Monday,” Akira sighed.  
   
The grin on Yuu’s face grew even wider. “Wait, is that a yes?”  
   
Akira flickered his eyes shut in utter defeat, groaning at the mess he was getting myself into. _Damn_ his soft heart. “Now, Yuu, listen up. I’m only doing this because I need someone ASAP by Monday, and as with all other jobs, you’re on probation for two weeks. If this doesn’t work out, I’m going to have to find someone else, OK? Also, if Kouyou _seriously_ doesn’t agree to all of this, then we’re not arguing with him, no question. Even if he’s your fiancé, and even if he’s my best friend, he’s still our boss and CEO, technically. We’re going to have to listen to him, alright?”  
   
Yuu released a small sigh, understanding what Akira meant. If Kouyou truly thought this was a bad idea, they couldn’t force him to accept such an arrangement just because of their affiliations with him. It’d be unfair to Kouyou, whose work Yuu knew meant a lot to him.  
   
“Okay, Akira. I wouldn’t want to make Kouyou unhappy, either. But! He won’t be, because this means I get to have office quickies with him from now on, and we both know he won’t pass that up.”  
   
“Yuu, I swear to god, if that was the whole point of you signing up for this position in the first place–”  
   
“ _Kidding_ ,” Yuu sang, smoothening the creases on his lap with a coy look on his face.  
   
Akira narrowed his eyes to him, barely believing his statement. “Fine, you’re hired. Be here Monday, 8 am sharp. I’ll get my secretary to teach you the ropes. I trust you have the necessary technological skills to utilise an office desktop computer?”  
   
Yuu snorted loudly at the doubtful tone of his voice. “Akira, I’m a decade younger than you. I know how to use computer applications you don’t even know _exist_.”  
   
“…Get your ass out of my office before I change my mind about hiring you, Yuu.”  
   
“You still have a soft spot for me, I know it,” Yuu grinned, quickly removing himself from the office chair. “Thank you so much, Akira! I owe you a big one.”  
   
“I’ll hold you to that. You know,” Akira started, cocking an eyebrow up. “There are a couple of things I need some help in convincing Takanori to put on in the bedroom…”  
   
~  
   
Kouyou suspected _nothing_ at all over the weekend. Apparently Akira hadn’t seen the point in informing Kouyou about his new replacement, which Yuu was immensely grateful about. Yuu wasn’t going to lie – he was nervous about the entire arrangement. He had come up with the idea of being Chiaki’s replacement rather spontanteously, but the more he thought about it, the more he felt it was a good idea.  
   
It would be a good chance for him to claim some college credit, spend more time with his ever-busy fiancé, and help Kouyou with his work, _all_ at the same time. Yuu had always felt bad that Kouyou naturally assumed the dominant, working role in their relationship, and Yuu was always overwhelmed with guilt whenever Kouyou provided him with free allowances or expensive gifts. Their relationship, monetarily-wise, hadn’t changed much from the way things used to be back when Kouyou was still his sugar daddy, and Yuu always felt like he was imposing on the blond. To be able to work and alleviate a little of that burden off Kouyou would make Yuu feel considerably better about their relationship, and Yuu hoped Kouyou could see it that way, too.  
   
They had spent a nice Saturday together, catching a movie at the cinema and doing grocery shopping at the supermarket, as per their usual weekly activities. On Sunday, they opted to stay at home instead, spending hours simply cuddling up on the sofa and mindlessly watching their favourite variety shows. They talked about their upcoming wedding, about their potential guests, about the colour of the napkins, about how perfect everything would be when it came to fruition on that day. Yuu and Kouyou then took turns to cook, and after filling themselves up with a delicious home-cooked dinner, they retired to bed early so they could indulge in their nightly, always-awaited lovemaking sessions. They were truly a domestic couple, through and through.  
   
And then came Monday.  
   
~  
   
It was to Yuu’s great luck that the first thing off Kouyou’s schedule today was a business meeting, held in another company’s office situated at the other side of the city. Yuu had to wake up extra early today _just_ to prepare Kouyou’s lunch for him to take to work, as well as Yuu’s own lunch for later, and the moment he’d sent Kouyou off at the doorstep with a goodbye kiss, Yuu was hurriedly rushing back to his room, pulling out the work outfit he’d secretly picked out the day before, and dressing himself appropriately to look the part of a rightful CEO’s secretary. He’d decided to stick with the same look that he did on the day of his interview with Akira, figuring that the glasses and high ponytail _really_ had the right combination of smart and cute, and he needed to look nothing short of either if he wanted to impress (see: seduce) Kouyou later on and convince him he was a perfect fit for the job.  
   
Yuu couldn’t drive yet, since he never thought he would ever need to, but if he was going to be working at Kouyou’s workplace from now on, he was sure he could simply head to work together with Kouyou in his car and have that aspect of his transportation settled. Just for today, though, Yuu found himself anxiously hailing for a cab, knowing he couldn’t be late for his first day at work. _Even_ if his boss was his fiancé. Even if the man who had hired him was, well, his fiancé’s best friend. And his best friend’s boyfriend.  
   
Five minutes before the clock struck eight, Yuu had already seated himself at Chiaki’s desk, quietly trying to steady the rapid beating of his heart. Holy _fuck_. The reality of what he’d done was slowly beginning to sink in onto him, and Yuu wasn’t sure if he was ready to face up to the potential consequences. He had gone behind Kouyou’s back and made a decision involving the both of them that he _hadn’t_ veto-ed with Kouyou first. It wasn’t as if Kouyou was his father, and it wasn’t as if Yuu had to constantly ask Kouyou for permission first before he did anything – but they were a fully committed couple, and they talked about anything, and everything, to each other. Yuu had hidden secrets from Kouyou once, and it had _not_ gone well. Kouyou was definitely going to be mad later, but if Yuu had done this with good intentions in the first place, it wouldn’t be so bad, right? _Right?_  
   
Whether Kouyou liked it or not, Yuu _was_ going to be his secretary.  
   
It wasn’t until four hours later, when Akira’s own secretary – Emiko – was finally done showing him around the office and running through his duties with him, as well as teach him how to properly utilise the office’s programs on the computer to fulfill every one of his tasks, that Yuu started to relax a little, the job not looking as intimidating as it had seemed like at the start. Once Emiko had left him to his own devices, making sure to let him know that Yuu could call her whenever he wasn’t sure about something, Yuu found himself managing to pick up three phone-calls – unsupervised – and answering them as professionally as he could sound, reiterating them his well-rehearsed ‘ _Mr. Takashima is currently away on a business meeting, this is his secretary speaking. May I take down your message for him and get him to call you back once he’s available?’_.  
   
Yuu had just finished looking through Kouyou’s agenda for today – apparently Chiaki finished Kouyou’s agendas weeks in advance, god bless that poor, hardworking woman – and making sure all was in order, when the doors to the lift opened, causing Yuu to stiffen right away, knowing that only _one_ person could be coming back to the office at this time. He braced himself to get yelled at by his lover, squeezing his eyes shut, his mind already running a thousand apologies in his head…  
   
…but he was pleasantly surprised when the man in question simply walked right past his cubicle, barely pausing as his voice firmly resounded off the office’s glass walls.  
   
“You’re the new secretary Akira got for me, right? Come see me in my office in 5.”  
   
Kouyou didn’t even spare a glance to Yuu as he passed him by; and his voice, as seductive as it was, sounded so, _so_ cold. Yuu couldn’t help but tremble slightly as he watched his lover’s back, so broad, so handsome, so well-fitted in his work suit, realizing Kouyou resembled and sounded like a whole other person altogether when he was at work. Suddenly it felt like the weekend they had spent together hadn’t even mattered; suddenly it felt like the Kouyou that had been clothed in just a simple t-shirt and boxers, the Kouyou that had been cuddling with Yuu on the couch, had been an entirely different entity altogether. Was he really the same man that stood before him now? In fact, _this_ Kouyou looked just like the Kouyou back then that had been ruthless, and selfish, and insensitive. The one that had dumped Yuu without a second thought, all to save his own pride.  
   
Kouyou truly lived up to his position as a CEO, didn’t he? He had to be domineering and confident enough to attain such a status, and suddenly Yuu was slightly afraid of what would happen if he got more in touch with Kouyou’s perfectionist, workaholic side. Because the Kouyou that Yuu had always known was so, _so_ unbelievable. So flawless, so dreamy. And what would happen if Kouyou started directing some of that bossy, overbearing side of him towards Yuu? Yuu wouldn’t be able to take it. Had Yuu really thought all of this through?  
   
No, Yuu reminded himself. He was here to help Kouyou, and he wasn’t going to be terrified of his own _fiancé_. So what if Kouyou tended to be strict in terms of his work? It only showed that Kouyou was serious, determined, and ambitious, and was truly a man to admire. He was Yuu’s perfect lover, and Yuu had decided to take up a position that not only would be immensely beneficial for Kouyou, but for Yuu’s own resumé, too. It wasn’t an easy task for just _anyone_ to land a job as a CEO’s secretary, especially for a university student such as him.  
   
But hell, it isn’t easy to simply get engaged to a CEO, too, and Yuu had done just that. Yuu had nothing to worry about in the luck department.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...hello!!! I'm back with more SA  <3 I hope people actually want this XD;; I have some ideas to further develop this story, but I didn't want to start a completely new story as a sequel for SA-- it felt weird to me, and I think sequels always fall flat XD so I think I'll write it as an extension of sorts for SA :D so, the 49th chapter is still the official end to SA, the 50th chapter is a side-story, and 51th chapter onwards is _another_ side-story hahaha (basically I just want to write everything possible with SA and I'm just crushing it all together lmao I can't seem to let this story go ;~;)
> 
> I think I always think back to that scene where Kouyou brings Yuu into his office the first time and Kouyou's like, "thank god you don't actually work here" and Yuu's like, "but what if I actually applied to be an intern here? _what would happen?_ " dun dun dun I guess we find out now :D:D:D
> 
> (also yuu's look throughout this entire internship is just black-rimmed glasses + high ponytail and hnnngh that is an A+ sight yes)
> 
> comments are so loved as usual <333


	52. the Office II

Yuu gave two knocks on the door before entering Kouyou’s office, smiling to himself at how official everything felt. Yuu had been to Kouyou’s office many times – in fact, he probably visited it at least once a week, for lunch dates or simply to have a quickie with the blond every now and then; but this was the first time Yuu was actually entering it for legitimate business matters, and it made Yuu feel… _important_. As if Yuu was finally worthy of entertaining Kouyou’s time, as if Yuu finally had a purpose to be standing before him in this office.  
  
Out of the corner of his eye, Yuu spotted broken vase shards lying atop the glass table by the side, ones that he knew he was responsible for the last time he’d been here. Kouyou had backed him up against the coffee table then, in a mad impulse to ravage the raven-haired’s neck, and Yuu had ended up knocking the tall vase over in the heat of their feverish lovemaking. Kouyou must have forgotten to call for someone to clear the mess amidst all of his work, especially now that Chiaki was gone. Yuu made a mental note to himself to find some time to get rid of the mess later.  
  
“Nice to meet you, Mizuki, please take a seat,” Kouyou called out, seated at his desk, his eyes still focused and immersed in reading his overdue paperwork. Akira must have given him Yuu’s fake name when informing him of the arrival of his new secretary. _Sneaky bastard_. Yuu had to control himself from emitting a humored laugh at the lie, and willed himself to utter a demure ‘yes’, taking a seat happily in front of his lover. Despite knowing that he was due for a yelling from Kouyou, Yuu was happy to take this job, happy to work for his lover, happy to relieve some stress off Kouyou’s mind. And it was all because he loved the older man above anything else, and he only had Kouyou’s interests at heart when he decided to take up this job.  
  
Yuu loved Kouyou, and he wanted to be close to him, and he wanted to take care of him, in the little ways available to Yuu. Yuu knew he wasn’t much; he understood that in their relationship there would always be an imbalance, because of how much older Kouyou was, and how naturally thoughtful Kouyou was, and how financially capable Kouyou was. To an outsider, Yuu would always be seen as the one being taken care of Kouyou, and Yuu knew the things Kouyou did for him would always outweigh the small acts of love Yuu tried to do in return. But Yuu was happy enough _trying_ ; he knew Kouyou appreciated all of Yuu’s efforts, and he knew Kouyou was one to get happy so, _so_ easily by anything Yuu did for him – just as long as Yuu did it with the intention to show love to him in return.  
  
And that was why Yuu was happy, to be here, to have a chance to help Kouyou in a way he least expected it. Because Yuu’s ultimate goal in life had long changed to being a lover worthy of Kouyou’s love, and Yuu wanted to do everything for Kouyou, not only because it made the older man happy, but because loving and caring for his soon-to-be husband like this made Yuu happy, too. And Yuu hoped desperately Kouyou could understand that.  
  
When Kouyou finally raised his head to meet Yuu’s gaze, for a second it almost appeared as if the older man hadn’t recognized the raven-haired, and was ready to begin introducing himself to Yuu. Yuu _almost_ took offense at the fact that his own fiancé couldn’t identify the very face of the man he called his ‘princess’ daily, but Yuu wasn’t let down by Kouyou’s subsequent reaction.  
  
Kouyou’s lifeless eyes soon flamed up with recognition and shock when they swept over Yuu’s face, his mind quickly registering Yuu’s graceful, familiar face features to be the ones he worshipped and kissed every night before bed; and his eyes were quickly flushing with anger before anything else, his blood boiling at the knowledge that the secretary Akira had arranged for him was his _very own lover_ – something that Akira should have known that Kouyou would _never_ have approved of.  
  
Kouyou didn’t even bother uttering a single word to Yuu. Yuu felt his stomach flip in dread the moment the blond’s lips were thinning, his temple throbbing, his eyes narrowing into icy slits at the very sight of Yuu. Yuu had thought Kouyou would have given him a chance to speak, at least. But he didn’t. Kouyou’s nimble fingers only picked up the office phone located on his desk, dialing Akira’s number impatiently to reach his vice-president.  
  
Yuu’s smile instantly slid off his face, his heart crestfallen. Kouyou wasn’t even going to give a chance to Yuu to justify and convince Kouyou he was right for the job? He wouldn’t even speak to Yuu first about this, rather than confront Akira about something he shouldn’t have let Yuu done? It was almost infuriating, how much of a child Kouyou treated Yuu like, sometimes. And Yuu’s slightly hurt, when he thinks about how a relationship shouldn’t be like this, that just because Kouyou was used to taking care of Yuu, it didn’t mean that Kouyou was entitled to have the final say over every decision Yuu wanted to make. And Yuu knows that they’ve had this discussion countless of times before, and that Kouyou only does it out of his concern for his lover, and that Kouyou isn’t trying to dictate Yuu’s life in any certain way. But Yuu just wants so desperately to love Kouyou in his own, special ways sometimes, and Kouyou simply won’t let him.  
  
“Good afternoon, Akira,” Kouyou was enunciating every syllable in a sickeningly sweet tone once the vice-president picked up over at the other end. Yuu cringed, not liking how mocking Kouyou was sometimes when confronting matters he didn’t approve of. “Would you prefer to be cremated after your death, or would you like to donate your organs to the sick and needy instead?”  
  
“Kouyou, at least let me talk,” Yuu began, unhappy with the way Kouyou was already ignoring him. “Please? Don’t get angry at Akira, I convinced him to hire me for this.”  
  
Kouyou snapped his head back to look at Yuu, his face still wearing an unconvinced expression. Swiftly slamming down the phone back down his desk, Kouyou cut Akira’s line right off – an action that made Yuu flinch, quickly growing nervous at how disgruntled the blond was acting.  
  
“Fine. Explain.”  
  
Kouyou’s eyes – though seething with rage – still looked partially devastated, and all of Yuu’s anger immediately went away at the sight. At the bottom of it all, Yuu remnded himself, Kouyou cared for him, and he loved him. Yuu knew he was at fault, too. Even though there were worst things Yuu could have done out there, taking up the position of being Kouyou’s secretary was a big enough decision that he knew he should have consulted Kouyou in advance about. Kouyou was most likely upset that Yuu hadn’t talked to him about it, and that he had to find out like this, only on Yuu’s very first day of work.  
  
But if Yuu had talked to him about it beforehand, he knew he never would have gotten the job. Kouyou wouldn’t have let him. He would have prevented it on all counts.  
  
“You… You really needed an assistant, and you’re already overworked enough as it is,” Yuu began softly, his voice timid. He was hoping if he looked frightened enough of the older man, then perhaps the blond would stop glaring at him through those distrusting eyes of his, and perhaps Kouyou would even relent and understand where Yuu was coming from. Yuu’s terrified look seemed to work, for Kouyou was quickly frowning and lowering his eyes, realizing that his angry front must be scaring Yuu, even if only slightly.  
  
“You were ranting about this to me, and I thought it wouldn’t hurt if I could help you out at work… Plus, it’s only for a short while. It’s not a permanent job, Kouyou. You’ve been so busy, too, and this is a great way for us to spend more time together. I’ve talked to my college, and I’ll get credit for this, so it’s all good.”  
  
Kouyou still spoke sternly in his reply, though, the same way he usually did on the phone when it came to discussing work matters to his staff. After being with Kouyou for practically two years now, Yuu could distinguish between the variations of tones Kouyou spoke with. And _this_ was the one he used when he had to prove his authority, and remind the other person of their place.  
  
“I see.  So, you’ve gotten it all planned out, then. Talking to Akira, college credits, and everything. Does this make you feel good then, Yuu? Thinking about helping me and becoming my secretary? You really think this is something that will make me happy?”  
  
And when Kouyou spoke, he was looking at Yuu straight in the eyes, as if daring Yuu to challenge his thoughts and prove him wrong. Yuu’s heart instantly plunged at the ruthless manner his lover was speaking to him in, hating how cruel Kouyou seemed when he was in this state, and Yuu desperately tried to remind himself of the gentle man he’d kissed goodbye at their doorstep only a few hours before.  
  
“You know that’s not what I meant, Kouyou…”  
  
“I don’t think you meant anything else, Yuu. No, I don’t think you meant anything else at all. Fact of the matter is, you decided on something concerning us – as important as _this_ – without even talking to me first about it. Do you know how this is making me feel? I would never do something about you without clearing it with you, first, because I love you, and I want to make sure you’re comfortable with it incase I make you unhappy. Did you even think I would agree to this?” Kouyou barked, a layer of hurt underlying all of his words.  
  
Yuu bit his lip in a state of guilt, unable to meet Kouyou’s gaze. Kouyou could get _so_ intimidating when he wanted to. Yuu didn’t know how he was going to hold his ground like this, if this was how Kouyou was going to speak to him on the constant at work. But Yuu knew that what Kouyou was saying was true. Kouyou would _never_ do anything of this sort to Yuu without consulting him first, and if Kouyou was willing to do that, why couldn’t Yuu do the same for him? Kouyou had every right to be angry at him for this matter; he was probably wounded by the way Yuu had done things behind his back, ones that Kouyou never would have agreed to.  
  
“I knew you wouldn’t like it,” Yuu answered quietly, dismal with the way the conversation was going. He knew Kouyou wouldn’t be happy, but he didn’t imagine how difficult it would be to talk to Kouyou when he was in this state. Kouyou hadn’t been angry at him in a long, long time, and even if he did, he always backed down so easily. He loved Yuu far too much. Perhaps Yuu had started taking his soft spot for Yuu for granted. “And I’m sorry, Kou, for doing this without talking to you about it first. But you would never have let me tried out otherwise, and I just wanted a chance to convince you that I was capable enough to work for you…”  
  
“Yuu,” Kouyou cut in, already tired of their argument. “I’m not saying you aren’t capable, but you’re my fiancé, and we already have our wedding to plan for. You know how my job is like, you know how busy I get. I just want you to be happy and carefree enough to plan our wedding on the side. And how the fuck do you expect me to order you around and ask you to get me coffee? I can barely even lay a finger on you, and you’re asking me to treat you like my personal slave? I don’t want you to ever get tired, or overworked, or run around and serve someone when you should be the one being served instead – even if the person you’re working for is me. You’re my princess, Yuu, and I don’t think you understand what I mean when I call you that. Because you’re not only the prettiest thing I have ever lay my eyes upon; you’re also so precious, and you deserve to be taken care of by me. Why don’t you understand that?”  
  
Yuu’s eyes fluttered back up to Kouyou’s conflicted ones, now that he finally understood better where his lover was coming from. Underneath all that rage, Kouyou truly loved him, and he didn’t want to degrade Yuu in any way, or do anything that made him feel uncomfortable. Kouyou had grown so used to coddling the raven-haired that to _not_ do so felt like an abomination.  
  
“I’d love to make you coffee,” Yuu hurriedly countered, a hopeful shimmer in his eye. “It doesn’t matter to me. I’m happy enough being of your service. I’ll make sure I’m useful around here. I’ll do everything Chiaki used to do. I’ll take down the right minutes, I promise. I won’t fall asleep during meetings. I’ll take all of your calls for you when you’re away. I even took three, just now. I’ve written all the messages for you on post-it notes. I can do this job, please, Kouyou. Let me prove it to you.”  
  
Kouyou’s heart swelled immediately at the raven’s sincerity. His gaze faltered, and his resolve gradually weakened now that he was seeing how determined Yuu was to fill in on this position. It hurt him to have to deny Yuu from the things he wanted, since he always did let Yuu have his way, but this was something Kouyou wasn’t entirely sure he could indulge Yuu in. He was so used to taking care of the raven-haired and catering to every of his needs and demands, that asking Yuu to get him coffee felt like something demeaning and inappropriate for Yuu to do. Kouyou _should_ be the one pampering Yuu instead.  
  
“I love you too much to see you work,” Kouyou admitted finally, softening his tone, unable to bring himself to continue being harsh with his lover any further. “Yuu, baby, please, won’t you re-consider this? I’m mean, at work, you know. I’m just afraid you’ll get scared of me. There’s a huge difference between the Kouyou that can afford to play around with you, and the Kouyou that has to get serious with his job. What if we get into fights? I don’t know what I’d do without you. We’re getting married so soon, and…”  
  
“You’re not going to scare me away,” Yuu persistently whispered, tugging at Kouyou’s hand over the desk and taking it gently into his. He interlaced their fingers together, playing with them as he spoke, his eyes gazing deeply into Kouyou’s ones as genuinely as he could. “We’ve been with each other long enough. I know how dedicated you are to your work. If I fuck anything up, it’s okay to be mad at me. I’ll learn my lesson, and I won’t repeat the same mistake. I love you, okay? I’ll get you your coffee anytime you need one. We’re going to have to keep things professional around here. You need to start seeing me as your secretary, not your lover.”  
  
Kouyou’s own eyes still bore strong reluctance, though. He couldn’t see himself bossing around his lover, and he still hoped avidly that Yuu would change his mind about it. Still, Yuu drove a hard bargain. Kouyou _did_ urgently require a secretary, and he did have faith that Yuu was intelligent and competent enough to be able to do the job.  
  
“Yuu, princess, I don’t know…”  
  
“You really need a secretary, and I’m here, and I’m willing,” Yuu sighed, knowing Kouyou only needed a _little_ more push to be fully convinced. Since he’d stopped being mad at him, all Yuu needed was to persuade Kouyou that this was the right choice. “Kouyou, you don’t have time to think. Also, I’m offended that I don’t look hot enough to be able to convince you to hire me on the spot.”  
  
That statement quickly brought a smile back onto Kouyou’s face. As stubborn as Yuu was, the raven-haired was undeniably adorable, and Kouyou never could resist Yuu when he was like this. “I have to admit; the glasses _really_ threw me off a little bit.”  
  
“I’m like Superman,” Yuu teased, swishing his ponytail to the side, ending it off with a cute wink. “So? How do I look?”  
  
Kouyou chuckled quietly to himself, heart fluttering slightly at the sight, almost forgetting the reason he’d been upset at the younger man in the first place. It was scary, how easily Yuu could sway his mood for the better. If Kouyou ever had a weakness, it would be Yuu – and Yuu only. Bringing Yuu’s hand up to his lips, the blond kissed it gently, his mesmerized eyes unable to pull away from the sight of his lover.  
  
“Beautiful. You look… beautiful. Like the first day we met. As dazzling and breathless as usual. I can’t take my eyes off you.”  
  
Yuu’s eyes lit up, nose wrinkling up, haughty with pride. “I’m going to have to remind you that we have to keep things professional, and you can’t just fuck me over the desk anytime you like when I’m your secretary,” he proceeded to hum happily, knowing his words would do the exact opposite, and plant those _exact_ dirty ideas into Kouyou’s head. If Yuu’s own capabilities weren’t enough to convince Kouyou to give him the job, _this_ would do the trick. Kouyou loved their office quickies more than anything else.  
  
Kouyou chewed against his lip, eyes flitting hesitantly to his desk at Yuu’s words. The raven evidently still wasn’t backing down from his decision to be his secretary. “Yuu, this isn’t going to be an easy job.”  
  
“But I’ll be with you,” Yuu pressed on, his hand clutching at Kouyou’s one. “And we’ve always been in this together. I’ll always be by your side. I love you so, _so_ much. We’ll make things work. We always have.”  
  
Kouyou managed a weak smile. Yuu always knew the right things to say.  
  
“I love you, too,” Kouyou murmured, his voice coming out strangled. “If you really want to do this for me, Yuu, then I can’t stop you. But if at anytime you think you want to quit, just tell me, and I will–”  
  
“I know,” Yuu laughed softly, shaking his head. “You’ll let me do anything. You won’t force me to stay. But are you seriously passing up more chances to fuck me in your office? Are youuu, _Mr. Takashimaaaa_?” Kouyou chuckled at that, shaking his head to himself. Yuu was always so playful.  
  
The raven-haired’s eyes dilated as soon as the words left his mouth, feeling a tingle down his spine. That was… different. “Oh my god. That felt _dirty_. I’ve never called you Mr. Takashima before. Why is that?” Yuu shrieked in excitement. “Imagine the endless possibilities. I can’t call you Kouyou at work anymore!”  
  
“I’m not hiring you _just_ because I want to fuck you, Yuu,” Kouyou rolled his eyes, smiling. “Wow, that was a sentence I never thought I would say. I suddenly feel like I’m in a porn flick.”  
  
“Everyday with me is a porn flick,” Yuu snickered.  
  
“You’re getting so naughty,” Kouyou teased, wagging a finger to his younger lover. “Stop giving me those come-hither eyes. You’ve already gotten the job, so you don’t have to seduce your interviewer anymore.”  
  
“What are you insinuating,” Yuu said, an innocent look on his face. “That I’m trying to fuck my way to the top?”  
  
Kouyou grinned. “Yuu, I’d love to sit here and discuss with you the many outcomes of you working under me, but I’m _sure_ you’ve missed at least two calls at your desk while talking to me. See, this is what I feared would happen. How am I supposed to concentrate at work anymore with you around? I’ll see you in an hour for lunch, okay?”  
  
Yuu was unwilling to part with him, but knew he had to return to his desk immediately to do his job. “Okay, Kou– … _sir_!” This name thing was going to prove to be a problem.  
  
And then Yuu was well on his way out, practically skipping his way back to his work cubicle after having gotten Kouyou’s approval.  
  
~  
  
An hour later, Yuu had five more post-it notes for the blond. Working as Kouyou’s secretary was an eye-opener for the raven; he’d never realized how much one could get accomplished in an hour before. The whole floor belonged to Kouyou and Kouyou only, and no one else worked on this floor besides the CEO himself and his secretary. There were no noise disturbances – just the routine sound of the air-conditioning, and the honking of the cars down below on the streets of the city. Kouyou’s office was situated in the middle of the busy city district, and under other circumstances Yuu would have found the bustling noises annoying, but seeing as how they were the only kind of noises to accompany Yuu through his work, Yuu found them oddly welcoming.  
  
Sometimes Yuu wondered how Kouyou never got lonely in that big office of his, but he figured that Kouyou already had enough work on his plate, and probably didn’t even have time to indulge in any feelings of loneliness whatsoever.  
  
When a full hour had passed (it wasn’t like Yuu had been counting down, or anything), Yuu promptly noted that it was time for lunch with his lover, and started putting his desktop computer to sleep, impatiently switching the office phone’s server to ‘busy’. Yuu pulled out his lunch from his bag, gathered the stack of post-it notes he had accumulated over the entire morning, and proceeded to stick them atop the lid of his lunch box. Then he got up from his seat and made his way to Kouyou’s office, thrilled to finally be having lunch with Kouyou on a weekday in a long, long time.  
  
He knocked twice against Kouyou’s door, then pushed it open without warning, his lips moving up into a huge smile as he sauntered his way in. Yuu closed the door behind him with a quiet ‘clink’, observing that his blond lover was still typing away furiously at his Macbook, not at all bothered by Yuu’s presence.  
  
“It’s time for lunch,” Yuu hinted excitedly, self-inviting himself to take a seat against the chair before Kouyou’s desk. Man, he was glad Kouyou was his fiancé. Who else could ever do something like this to a CEO? He faced Kouyou directly, smiling widely to him, taking in the handsome sight of Kouyou heavily devoted to his work. Yuu would never get tired of staring at the blond – he was so attractive no matter what he did.  
  
“I’m just finishing up an email,” Kouyou muttered, his eyes still concentrated on his computer screen, his brows squeezing together into a crease, looking blatantly pissed off at something regarding work as usual.  
  
“I got more notes for you to look through,” Yuu eagerly informed, pulling the post-its off his lunch box and sticking it onto a visible spot of Kouyou’s desk. “Make sure you read them, alright? They seem important.”  
  
“Okay, babe, later,” Kouyou answered, without looking. Yuu grimaced when he realized Kouyou wasn’t even listening to him. Yuu didn’t let it get to him, though. Not entirely. Kouyou was simply busy, and he’d notice the post-its in time to come.  
  
“It’s been so long since we had lunch together,” Yuu chattered on, unwrapping the cloth he had swathed his lunch box in. “It’s so nice to sit down with you like this. Where did you keep the lunch I prepared for you? I’ll take it out.”  
  
“I said _later,_ Yuu,” Kouyou suddenly snapped, quickly startling Yuu. Kouyou never liked to be disturbed when he was working, much less talked to continuously like this. Yuu recoiled at Kouyou’s words and immediately fell silent, having never expected to be spoken to like that.  
  
Yuu knew that if he was serious about working as Kouyou’s secretary, though, he’d have to toughen up and learn to separate the Kouyou he knew at home, with the Kouyou that was hard at work. He needed to stop expecting Kouyou to give in to him for every single little thing, and he’d have to get used to Kouyou’s rigid work attitude if he wanted to prove to him that he was capable of this job, as much as Chiaki was. Yuu brushed the cold response from Kouyou off, then hastened to get up from his seat, scouring the office for Kouyou’s work bag. He eventually found it on the floor next to Kouyou’s desk, and soon found Kouyou’s lunch hidden in it.  
  
He placed their lunches side-by-side with a satisfied smile, and had just been in the middle of wiping their utensils clean with a cloth when Kouyou – noticing his raven beau had suddenly gone silent without a single word – turned from his laptop to Yuu, an apologetic look in his eyes.  
  
“Sorry, that email was urgent,” Kouyou emitted a sigh, feeling bad for having accidentally spoken roughly with Yuu earlier. He hadn’t meant to, and was now afraid the younger man had taken it personally. He was too used to assuming an authoritative role at work, and he didn’t want Yuu to be hurt by it.  
  
“It’s okay, you had work to do,” Yuu responded, handing the cleaned utensils over into Kouyou’s hands. Kouyou was relieved to see the understanding smile on Yuu’s face. “Ready to eat?”  
  
“Yes,” Kouyou returned his smile, closing the lid of his Macbook and pushing it to the side. “This is new. I’m not really used to setting aside time to eat at work. I’m usually eating and reading something important at the same time.”  
  
Yuu made a loud ‘tsk’, eyeing Kouyou with a disapproving huff. “That’s unhealthy, Kouyou.”  
  
“Your meals are always the healthiest, so it’s okay,” Kouyou chuckled, quickly digging in to his lunch. He didn’t forget to ask after the raven-haired, more concerned over him than anything else. “So, how’s your first day at work coming along?”  
  
“Mmm,” Yuu said, while munching on a carrot in his mouth at the same time. “Pretty okay. I don’t think it’s getting too busy yet. Oh, but you get a lot of calls looking for you. It’s wild.”  
  
Kouyou laughed. “Just continue taking their messages, and tell them I’ll call them back… _Even_ if I don’t really call back any of them.”  
  
Yuu looked appalled at the piece of new information. “You don’t?! That’s rude.”  
  
“That’s the life of a CEO. If they truly needed me, they would _actually_ have access to my personal phone number,” Kouyou smiled, explaining. Yuu was way too naïve. “So, new secretary, how’s my schedule looking for this week?”  
  
“Oh, I know this one!” Yuu grinned excitedly, looking absolutely triumphant with himself. Kouyou’s heart leaped twofolds at the adorable sight. “You’re OK for the rest of the day, just make sure to sign those documents for the IT department, and get me to hand it to them before the day ends. It’s important, because the contract expires in two days. As for tomorrow, you have two meetings in the afternoon, one after another, and it’s the sales department trying to sell their latest pitches to you.”  
  
“They better be good, because their last ones sucked,” Kouyou retorted bitterly, and it was a reply that sent Yuu laughing, almost choking on the food in his mouth. “What? I’m serious. You’ll understand tomorrow. You’re going to have to sit in on those meetings with me anyway. To take minutes. And serve coffee. Aw, sweetheart, do you really have to work as a secretary? I don’t want you serving any other men coffee. They’re a bunch of idiots.”  
  
Yuu giggled uncontrollably. “Kouyou, be nice. Anyway, on Wednesday, you’re booked full in the meeting room, from morning till evening time. It’ll be the Kimura Corporation first, then the Chiyoda Industries, and then Hazama Company. On Thursday, you’re out at Daiwa’s office in the morning for negotiations. On Friday, you don’t have anything booked… yet. Someone by the name of Miyu was trying to set up an appointment, though. You should get that post-it checked out.”  
  
Kouyou took a second to take it all in, digesting his schedule into his head. Once he was done, he was glancing back to Yuu, a wide smile of approval visible upon his face.  
  
“Not bad for someone on his first day of work,” Kouyou affirmed, astonished by Yuu’s enthusiasm for his job. Yuu looked away, flustered by the flattering remark. “You’ve memorized my schedule without me needing to tell you to do so.”  
  
“Emiko told me my duties, so…” Yuu attempted in vain to hide his blush, suddenly feeling shy. “I’ve gotten next week’s schedule memorized, too.”  
  
“Hn.” Kouyou folded his arms, mildly surprised. He reclined in his seat, his face in contemplative thought. “Efficient, initiative and a fast-learner. I’m impressed.”  
  
Yuu felt himself grow hot with embarrassment under Kouyou’s intense gaze, and he quickly looked away, distracting himself with the chewing of the food in his mouth. This… This was new. He was so used to being complimented by Kouyou about his looks and his personality in general, and that was embarrassing enough on its own; but there had never been an opportunity for Yuu to showcase his capabilities or intellect to the blond, and so Yuu had always felt much dumber in comparison to his much more successful counterpart.  
  
This was probably the first time _ever_ that Kouyou was judging him based on his own ethics and skills, and he was elated that Kouyou liked what he was seeing. Because as much as Kouyou was his lover and companion, Kouyou could be seen as a mentor of sorts for Yuu, too, and to have Kouyou’s approval in terms of his work meant _so_ much to Yuu. Because these comments coming from Kouyou weren’t coming from Yuu’s Kouyou, the one that kissed every inch of his skin and whispered to him at night; no, these comments were coming from the Kouyou whose position as the head of the company meant that his opinions were highly regarded and valued, and it made Yuu happy to hear such things from a real, legitimate CEO. Yuu had wanted to prove to Kouyou that he wasn’t just some pretty thing for Kouyou to embrace and show off, and it already looked like he wasn’t doing too bad on his first day of his job.  
  
Looking down abashedly to his food, Yuu barely hid the joyous smile on his lips. “Stop it… I told you that I could do this job if you _just_ let me do it. It’s your fault for not believing in me in the first place. You’d have missed out on me, hmph.”  
  
“I’m sure I would have,” Kouyou chuckled, unable to tear his eyes away from how cute Yuu was whenever he became shy. It hadn’t come to his attention before, but perhaps what his younger lover was truly looking for amidst all of these was simply – validation. Perhaps Kouyou had always been so focused on taking care of Yuu and making sure that Yuu would never have anything to worry about in the world, that in the process he must have neglected to remember that Yuu had his own pride and confidence, too. Yuu was _so_ much more than a pretty face, and Kouyou firmly believed in that, but perhaps he hadn’t been communicating that to Yuu as much.  
  
Because Kouyou had always emphasized on how beautiful, how gorgeous, how attractive that Yuu looked to him, that Yuu must have started feeling like he was being treated like a trophy wife, and not as an intellectual individual on his own. Kouyou noted to himself that he had to remember to applaud Yuu on other aspects, not just his beauty alone; and then perhaps Yuu might feel better about being with Kouyou, and then perhaps Yuu wouldn’t feel the enormous need to prove to Kouyou that he could do the things that Kouyou did, too.  
  
Kouyou still feigned a look of sadness afterwards, though. “It’s just… The selfish part of me would have wanted you to stay at home with Takanori and decide on our wedding plans instead. Like the type of lingerie you’re going to be wearing on our wedding night.”  
  
“ _Kouyou_! You–”  
  
“It’s ‘Mr. Takashima’ to you now,” Kouyou quipped. Yuu narrowed his eyes to him.  
  
“You’re silently loving this, aren’t you.”  
  
“I couldn’t stop you from doing it, so I’m joining in on the fun instead. Is that so wrong?”  
  
“Are any of the managers in the other departments looking for a secretary? I think I might want to request for a transfer. Reason? I’m being sexually harassed by my boss. On day one.”  
  
“Not so fast, babydoll. I’ll fire anyone who even shows interest in taking up your offer. Why do you keep forgetting I hold all the power in this place?”  
  
“That’s because you let me hold all the power when it comes to you, idiot.”  
  
“And it’s only because I love you so.”  
  
~  
  
Yuu spent the rest of the day organizing the stacks of files that were delivered hourly to his desk by Emiko. The downsides of working for such a big-shot like Kouyou was that each and _every_ department in the entire building had to report first to Akira, then eventually to Kouyou, and nothing could ever bypass Kouyou’s eyes unless he gave such a decree. When Yuu found the time, he would browse through the files and attempt to understand the contents of each one, knowing it’d be easier for him to ease into his job if he actually understood the kind of documents he was relaying from one place to another. It was his job to get the necessary files to Kouyou, have them signed, then re-deliver the documents back to their respective departments, all within a tight time frame to ensure the entire business was ongoing and nothing ever came to a standstill.  
  
The heads of other departments had begun sending Yuu emails, too, detailing messages they’d like to be passed on to Kouyou, and booking appointments in Kouyou’s schedule that Yuu had to make sure to keep free for them. It was an entirely different world from the classes Yuu took at his college, since they primarily involved many essays and tests. As Kouyou’s secretary, the ultimate thing Yuu had to ensure he could do was multi-task. There was no way he could afford to sit at his desk and only do one thing at a time. The phone was constantly ringing, the emails kept coming in, and the files stacked increasingly higher atop each other as time went by.  
  
By the time the clock struck six, signaling the supposed end of work, Yuu was – he’d never admit it outloud, but – _exhausted_. He knew Chiaki often worked late till at least an hour or two later, but Yuu knew he would be going home the moment Kouyou was. Since Kouyou made it a point to get home on time to have dinner with Yuu, he didn’t think Kouyou would stay for too long past office hours, either. He doubted Kouyou would make him work too late, too; the blond would feel it was bad enough that Yuu was working as his secretary, and he would try his best to get Yuu off work as soon as he could.  
  
Five minutes past six, and Yuu had another email coming his way. To his delight, it was from the one person he hadn’t seen appear yet in his inbox.  
  
**From:** "Takashima Kouyou"  <takashima_kouyou@outlook.com>  
**To:** "Shiroyama Yuu"  <shiroyama_yuu@outlook.com>  
**Subject:** Princess  <3  
  
_Babe, I’ll take you out for dinner in 5. We’ll go to that Italian restaurant you love, OK? You must be so tired by now. But you made it through your first day of work so splendidly – I’m so proud of you. Pack up now._  
  
_ <3 Kouyou_  
  
Office emails. How sweet. They had been together for close to two years now, but Yuu never tired of his thoughtful texts, and now it seemed like they had moved on to work emails. Yuu guessed this was going to be their new way of communicating from now on… _Well,_ other than seeing Kouyou face-to-face. Yuu would be pretty much spending every time of the day with his lover now.  
  
And it was a thought that Yuu was extremely happy to have.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kouyou, very surprisingly, didn't murder anyone. :D
> 
> I'm going to make it a point to update at least once a week. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this new chapter as usual <3


	53. the Office III

“Are you sure you don’t want to quit yet?” Kouyou asked, just as he slipped under the covers in bed with Yuu. They’d had a filling dinner together, one that had left Yuu in a food comatose, and when they finally returned to their penthouse, Yuu was eager to get the both of them into the shower, not used to the practice of showering so late into the night just yet, unlike how Kouyou usually did.  
   
“I thought you said I was doing good at my job,” Yuu mumbled sleepily, leaning his head in against Kouyou’s chest, too tired to remain conscious for any much longer. He clutched at Kouyou’s shirt for comfort, his heavy eyelids struggling to remain open, knowing Kouyou enjoyed their late night conversations more than anything. Kouyou circled his arms around Yuu’s waist, bringing Yuu closer to him.  
   
“You are doing good, of course you are, you’ve been so amazing at your first day of work, my little flower,” Kouyou praised, kissing Yuu lightly against his hair. Yuu nuzzled further into Kouyou’s touch, liking the way Kouyou was holding him. “But I’m just afraid it’ll tire you out. You’re so fragile.”  
   
“I’m not really a flower, you know,” Yuu protested with a yawn, earning himself another kiss from Kouyou. “Stop trying to protect me. I’m almost graduating from college. I’ll have to find a job someday.”  
   
“Do you really have to?” Kouyou frowned, not liking the idea, grasping Yuu tighter to him at the thought. “That’s something we’ll leave to discuss again for another day. For now… Well, do you like your workspace at the office? Need me to change anything? I want to make sure you’re completely comfortable there.”  
   
When Yuu didn’t give a response, Kouyou gazed down and noticed his young fiancé was already deep into slumber, already snoring lightly against the blond’s chest. It made Kouyou smile, though his heart still ached silently at the sight. Yuu must have been so tired.  
   
~  
   
For the first time in a _year_ , Yuu failed to wake up before Kouyou did, just to prepare breakfast for his fiancé to eat and lunch for his fiancé to take to work. Instead, he woke up in bed alone, having been too exhausted the previous night to hear any alarm ring. He almost panicked, thinking that Kouyou must have seen his chance and _took_ it – to get to work early and leave Yuu in bed so Kouyou had a legit reason to fire the raven-haired – and Yuu was ready to curse at how cunning his fiancé was, when he heard the sounds of tap water running in the bathroom. _Oh_. Kouyou was still here. That must mean Yuu hadn’t slept in too late. Thank god, because Yuu would have seriously blamed himself if otherwise.  
   
Yuu hopped out of bed and made his way to his walk-in closet, dressing himself in his work attire while he waited for Kouyou to be done washing himself up. A quick glance to the clock showed Yuu that he hadn’t enough time to prepare breakfast _nor_ lunch for the either of them, and Yuu berated himself mentally for it. It had become customary for him to make meals for Kouyou, and today he would be breaking that tradition of his. Kouyou would be so disappointed – he’d always loved eating Yuu’s home-cooked meals, and he’d always taken time to commend Yuu for his efforts on them. Now, thanks to Yuu’s oversleeping, he wouldn’t be able to make those meals that Kouyou so loved.  
   
Kouyou stepped out of the bathroom a minute later, fully clothed in his suit for work, his hair neatly combed back. He must have seen the upset look on Yuu’s face, for in the next second the blond was hurriedly planting a kiss atop Yuu’s head to assuage some of that guilt of his.  
   
“No worries about breakfast or lunch. We’ll drop by a nice café on our way to work and I’ll get us some food. As for lunch, I guess I’ll finally have the time to show you the world-class restaurants near our office.”  
   
Yuu had to hold back apologetic tears at how considerate Kouyou was being to him, seeing as how Yuu thought he didn’t deserve it.  
   
“I’m sorry I slept in so late,” Yuu murmured, remorse written all over his face. Kouyou pinched lightly at his cheek, thinking Yuu to be silly for being so upset at the fact that he wasn’t able to cook for Kouyou. “I’ll make sure I wake up early tomorrow to prepare food for us.”  
   
Kouyou shook his head, then held Yuu by the shoulders, speaking with Yuu sternly. “Yuu, I don’t want you waking up early to prepare meals for any of us anymore, alright? You had time before as a student, so it was okay. But now you’re working, for me no less, and I know how tiring it is. You’ll barely be getting any sleep if you still woke up early everyday to prepare meals. We’ll just eat out for our meals from now on, okay?”  
   
Yuu made a small noise of protest, since he’d been adamant on making Kouyou happy through his own, little means, and cooking for Kouyou daily had been one of them; but he knew he had no choice but to abide by Kouyou’s words from now on. Yuu knew what Kouyou said was true, too, and that his fiancé was only looking out for his welfare. If yesterday was any indication of how his days were going to be like for the next four months, Yuu was going to be too worn out to do anything else but sleep by the time he got home. There was no way he could muster enough energy to wake up extra early every morning like he used to do.  
   
“I know you liked my home-cooked meals,” Yuu whispered out regretfully, glistening eyes gazing up into Kouyou’s ones. Kouyou broke into a light chuckle, fingers wiping quickly at Yuu’s eyes to keep the raven-haired from bursting into tears.  
   
“But I like my fiancé better, and I want my fiancé to have enough sleep so his health won’t be in jeopardy. You’re not going to work and be my housewife at the same time, Yuu. You can only choose one.” Kouyou tapped Yuu’s nose lightly with his finger. “And if it were up to me…”  
   
“Stop trying to convince me to quit, it’s not happening.” Yuu smiled, shaking his head. He then tipped up slightly on his toes, rewarding Kouyou’s kindness to him with a soft kiss onto the blond’s lips. “I love you so much.”  
   
“I love you even more, Yuu.”  
   
~  
   
Going to work together with Kouyou felt _extraordinary_. Yuu had always felt daunted heading to the congested office lobby, waiting for the elevators to arrive; always felt like the office workers around them watched Yuu in scrutiny and whispered behind his back, talking about the young-looking man whom they couldn’t understand why their CEO was going out with. Of course, they might not necessarily be speaking badly about Yuu, however Yuu had no sure way of finding out. Yuu had always been so self-conscious standing around in Kouyou’s work environment that each time Kouyou brought Yuu along up to his office, Yuu always found himself burying his face into his scarf, hiding his head into Kouyou’s chest, hoping that if Kouyou just wrapped his arms around Yuu a little tighter, Yuu could melt into Kouyou’s hold and appear invisible to everyone else except for his very own lover.  
   
This time, however, Yuu wasn’t going to Kouyou’s office as his lover. He was going as his _secretary_. This time, Yuu didn’t have to rely on Kouyou’s office pass to use the elevator. Yuu had his own office pass, with his very own name and position stated clearly onto it. Yuu was an equal, now, and that changed things up. Yuu was as good as any other salary worker that held a job in this building – perhaps even better, since some of those salary workers wouldn’t even get a chance to speak to the CEO themselves in their entire lifetime – and Yuu didn’t have to be afraid of being looked down by anyone else.  
   
And when Kouyou and Yuu arrived at the lift lobby, waiting in the corner next to a huge crowd of office workers whose eyes were permanently fixated upon the couple, confused over who Yuu was, Kouyou didn’t seem to mind their obvious ogling, and _even_ reached his arm over to wrap around Yuu’s waist, clearly wanting to assert his claim over his raven-haired fiancé in front of everyone else.  
   
“Oi,” was Yuu’s immediate reaction, slapping Kouyou’s arm off him without any hesitation.  
   
Kouyou flinched inwardly at being rebuffed, and retracted his arm from Yuu, hissing as he held his arm back to himself. “Is there a problem, babe?”  
   
“You’re my boss,” Yuu chided. “Act like one. People are looking. I thought we agreed to keep things professional at work.”  
   
Kouyou pulled a sour face, having not expected such a response. Yuu _never_ rejected him. Where did the shy, blushing Yuu who loved being hugged by Kouyou go to? “I can’t even touch my fiancé now?”  
   
“No, _Mr._ _Takashima_ ,” Yuu emphasized on the older man’s title, his fingers moving up to shift at his own thick black-rimmed glasses in a bid to appear more intellectual. “You can’t. I’m your secretary. This is incredibly inappropriate, and frankly, bordering on the lines of sexual harassment. You can’t earn the respect of your other workers by touching your secretary like this. We’re going to have a hands-off policy from now on.”  
   
Kouyou would have began fuming, if he hadn’t been so amused by the new-found confidence that had suddenly surged up inside of his lover. Perhaps this could mark a beginning for a change for the better? Perhaps Yuu was finally beginning to feel better about himself in this relationship, with all of its imbalance of power and dynamics that Kouyou wasn’t within control to change, and perhaps if Kouyou let Yuu take charge of his own career, it would make Yuu feel more in control of _some_ things at least, and more assured of himself, whilst being with the blond. Kouyou often forgot that he was in a perfect position to be able to impart some guidance to Yuu, that he could use his age and wisdom to help Yuu through some nerve-wrecking stages of his life. Because as assertive and level-headed Kouyou was right now, back when Kouyou was only Yuu’s age, he had still been clouded in plenty of self-doubt, and he regularly re-evaluated himself, wondering if he was good enough for anyone, or even for the world.  
   
Right now, it was plain to him that Yuu could benefit plenty from working under Kouyou, and Kouyou needed to ensure he allowed Yuu enough freedom and trust to do so. And even if Kouyou was Yuu’s lover, and constantly overprotective of him, Kouyou couldn’t possibly shelter him for the rest of his life – actually, Kouyou could, and he _would,_ but that was besides the point – and Kouyou wanted Yuu to come into his own person. So, Kouyou thought to himself, the older man was willing to give in to Yuu for now. He would allow Yuu to draw the boundaries he wanted, he would allow Yuu to do things he saw fit and right as Kouyou’s very own secretary. _All_ as long as Yuu slowly grew more confident of himself and of his own abilities, which Kouyou hadn’t realized had been taken away from Yuu the moment he got into a relationship with the blond.  
   
“I see. I understand, then. By the way, Yuu, I have a question for you. I know you look really hot in those pair of glasses, but… I’ve been curious. Do you _actually_ need glasses? I thought you had perfect 20/20 vision.” Kouyou still couldn’t resist teasing his lover, though. Yuu was too cute.  
   
Yuu sulked, knowing that Kouyou was saying _anything_ just to annoy him at this point. “You need to shut your mouth right about… now.” Kouyou just offered him back a faint smile. Yuu scrunched his nose up high into the air haughtily.  
   
“And don’t get into the same lift as me.”  
   
“Yuu,” Kouyou gave a straight face as he spoke, resisting the humored chuckle he wanted so badly to let out. “I’m your boss. You can’t order me _not_ to get into the same lift as you. I’m the one that does the ordering around here. Besides, we’re going to the same floor.”  
   
“Fine, Mr. Takashima,” Yuu sighed out in exasperation, looking as though he had no choice. “Your call. But _no_ making out in the lift.”  
   
“Yuu, when I hired you, I think one of the terms in our contract was that I got to make out with you anytime I wanted.” Kouyou grinned.  
   
Yuu was quick to point out. “We didn’t even have a contract!”  
   
“Well, we had a verbal contract. An oral agreement. And you know what else is oral?” Kouyou questioned, a scheming look in his eye.  
   
“I’m going to call Akira later and ask for a transfer in department.”  
   
“While you’re at it, let him know that if he does _anything_ again involving you without consulting me first, then he should have a will prepared, because I have connections with the mafia, and they can murder people without leaving even a _single_ trace of a body. Just letting you know.”  
   
“Takashima Kouyou, have you ever gotten psychologically assessed before? I think you have all the right traits of a psychopath. I took a psychology class, once. I’m pretty sure you’re 80% there.”  
   
“Well, since you’re so qualified, maybe you should assess me. In more ways than one.”  
   
“…You _wish_.”  
   
~  
   
At about three in the afternoon, Yuu had been busy typing up an agenda for next week’s meeting when the office phone next to him rang. Yuu picked it up right away, already pulling out another post-it note for him to write on.  
   
“Hello, you’ve reached Takashima Kouyou’s office,” Yuu chirped out, reaching for a pen. “How may I help you?”  
   
“Wow, you sound great. What’s your name? You should come see me in my office sometime,” came a deep, flirty male voice over the line, the cheekiness of the words immediately sending Yuu’s heart dashing against his chest. He hardly knew anyone else here other than Kouyou and Akira, so to have someone speaking to him like this terrified him out of his wits. It only dawned upon him two seconds later that it was his very boss speaking to him, and Yuu was quickly huffing, though a lone smile still lingered upon his lips.  
   
“Kouyou?! You frightened me! I thought I’d met a pervert already on day two of work,” Yuu moaned, his frantic heartbeat settling back into its usual pace. “Wait, I’d already met one yesterday. _You_. Anyway, what are you calling me for? You know you can just come out and talk to me.”  
   
Kouyou let loose a couple of chuckles on his end. “Well, my meeting’s at three-thirty, but I’m going to need you to start preparing for it now. Can you do that? There’s a pantry on level thirty – prepare at least eight cups of coffee and I’ll meet you at the meeting room there.”  
   
“Oh, okay, can do,” Yuu answered straight away, grabbing for the book he’d prepared for the meeting later across the table. “I’ll see you later, then, Mr. CEO.”  
   
“Love you, babydoll.” Kouyou snickered over the line.  
   
Yuu rolled his eyes up to the ceiling, smiling to himself. “Love you too.”  
   
~  
   
Yuu thought he would have gotten used to all of the staring by now, but he still hadn’t. Unlike Kouyou’s floor (or Akira’s, for that matter), the other levels held individual departments of office workers, and the vast amount of office cubicles that came into Yuu’s sight as he went to the thirtieth level just – _slightly_ – intimidated him. He had grown used to his solitary space on Kouyou’s floor, and since he had spent most of his time there alone so far, he didn’t have much chances to interact with the departments downstairs. To come into company with so many people at once still made him uncomfortable. No wonder people tended to fear Kouyou – he was far too out of reach for most of them.  
   
Many curious eyes followed Yuu’s movements as he headed straight for the pantry. The raven-haired was determined not to let his social anxiety overcome him, and he tried his hardest to remain focused on his job. Yuu wasn’t sure if the others actually knew of who he was, or were just intrigued by the random appearance of an unfamiliar presence. Either way, Yuu reminded himself that he would be seeing his fiancé soon enough, and he had nothing to worry about when Kouyou was back next to him. Kouyou would be enough comfort for him.  
   
The woman that had been coincidentally inside of the office pantry when Yuu entered was surprisingly friendly to him. Yuu knew how to make coffee, sure, but the equipment was new to him, and the woman had ended up doing a helpful demonstration that soon eased Yuu easily into his task, which Yuu was incredibly thankful for.  
   
“You look familiar,” she had commented after, her eyes seizing Yuu’s body up. Yuu tried not to let his fear show. “And _really_ cute.”  
   
“I’m, um, the new secretary. For the CEO, that is,” Yuu’s smile was tight, wondering if she knew his true identity as Kouyou’s fiancé. “I’m Yuu, nice to meet you.”  
   
“Oh, nice to meet you! I’m Miyu, head of department of sales,” Miyu flashed him a full-toothed grin, allowing Yuu to lower his defences a tad bit. “I’ll see you in the conference room later, then, for the meeting?”  
   
“See you,” Yuu returned a tight smile back, thankful she hadn’t brought up his affiliation with Kouyou at all. In fact, she had been hospitable and nice, and Yuu registered in his mind that this was the Miyu that had probably dropped him a phone call yesterday, requesting for a meeting with Kouyou. Perhaps she really hadn’t known of his engagement with Kouyou after all.  
   
When Yuu brought a full tray of steaming hot coffees to the conference room for the impending meeting, Kouyou was still nowhere in sight. The two teams that were responsible for pitching their ideas to Kouyou later on were already there, though, and rehearsing their lines quietly under their breaths. The laptops and screens had been professionally set-up, and half the people were pacing back and forth in the room, appearing edgy and tense, seemingly afraid of the arrival of their CEO. Yuu had to hold back his amused chuckles to himself. It truly was so odd to see people frightened of his fiancé. He had always seen Kouyou as a normal person, as a lover to go home to and snuggle up to at night in bed, and he had a million things in the world to tease Kouyou about _or_ bring Kouyou to his knees for; but to these office workers, Kouyou was their boss, who determined their worth, and their livelihoods, and their jobs.  
   
As Yuu lowered the tray down onto the middle of the meeting table, people began swarming around him, eager to get a cup of coffee. Yuu attempted to back away to allow them more space, but in the next moment he felt an arm snake around the back of his waist, securing him into a vice grip. Yuu knew it’d be none other than Kouyou, who must have finally come down to the conference room for the meeting. As Yuu’s lips gently parted to begin vocalizing his lover’s name, though, he felt the taller man behind him’s heavy breath upon his ear, lowly speaking in a voice that did _not_ sound one bit like Yuu’s fiancé.  
   
“I’ve never seen this pretty thing around here before,” the man was saying, his hand creeping further up Yuu’s waist. Yuu resisted the immediate urge to hurl. “You look relatively young. Are you on an internship?”  
   
Yuu’s blood ran cold. His movements came to a standstill at the knowledge that it _wasn’t_ his lover who was touching him; instead, it was a stranger who had thought Yuu to be some young, pretty thing he could casually pick up and take advantage of. What the hell was this man doing? Was Yuu _seriously_ getting sexually harassed on his second day of work here? Growing increasingly uncomfortable, Yuu held his breath, still not daring to turn his head back for a look at the face of his predator, silently hoping that if Yuu proved to be disinterested, the man would take a hint and move away.  
   
Yuu wasn’t new to this; he’d once been a sugar baby, and his encounters with disturbing, perverse men had been aplenty. He’d gone on so many dates that had left a bad after-taste in his mouth, figuratively _and_ non-figuratively, and he’d been called nasty names, been touched in places he hadn’t found appropriate, had his boundaries crossed so, _so_ many times – matter of the fact was, Yuu wasn’t new to this. He’d had bad experiences with many strange men, but even so, you never do get quite used to being assaulted so readily like these, you never do eradicate the fear, and the anxiety, and the nausea, and the humiliation, all of which comes along with it. And Yuu might be stronger now, and much toughter than the sweet young thing he used to be two years before, but he couldn’t find it in himself to push the man behind him away, he couldn’t gather enough courage to speak out angrily against his actions.  
   
With adrenaline gushing through his throat, Yuu felt fear constrict his heart, unable to manage anything more than a quiet plea.  
   
“I’m trying to do my job. Please take your hands off me.”  
   
It wasn’t much; but it was enough. At least enough for Yuu, for now. Yuu had stood up for himself, and very quickly, he was overcome with longing, longing for his fiancé, and his overdue arrival. Kouyou would be so, _so_ pissed when he found out about this man and his hands on Yuu. Kouyou wouldn’t take it lying down at all. Not for his own pride, no, but because he genuinely loved the raven-haired, and he wouldn’t stand for anyone disrespecting the twenty-three year old he so desperately loved. And Yuu didn’t have anything to worry about once he told Kouyou about this. Kouyou would protect him. Kouyou would do anything within his power to keep him safe.  
   
Meanwhile, though, it was getting harder and harder to breathe. Yuu felt almost claustrophic with the way the man was closing in on him, murmuring suggestive things that Yuu couldn’t bring himself to concentrate on. Yuu hated how alone he felt; how the rest of the people didn’t seem to notice the uncomfortable scene before them, how occupied they were with themselves and their coffees, how much of a joke Yuu suddenly felt in this job of his. Perhaps they were used to the perverse behavior of their colleague’s, and perhaps they thought nothing of it at all. Perhaps everything was just a joke to them, just something to laugh at, something to brush off and treat as an everyday occurrence. Or perhaps Yuu’s position as secretary was lowly in their eyes, and didn’t warrant the attention they thought he deserved. Whatever reason it was, Yuu didn’t want to be here anymore.  
   
And _god_ , it was getting so fucking hard to breathe, when his throat was all choked up like this, and he daren’t even let out a single sound for help, too afraid of being embarrassed otherwise, and all Yuu really wanted was just to return to the arms of his beloved–  
   
“What the fuck are you doing, Hiroki? Get your hands off my secretary.”  
   
–Kouyou. Yuu almost let out a cry of relief at the familiar sound of the blond’s voice, his deep, commanding tone instantly provoking Hiroki to tear his arms away from the raven, quickly uttering a meek apology to his CEO. Yuu was too much in shock to have a proper reaction, but the minute he was pulled into Kouyou’s warm embrace from behind, the raven-haired turned and wrapped his arms up high around Kouyou’s neck, holding him so tight the older man could hardly breathe. Kouyou’s lips parted slightly with concern, having not expected Yuu to be embracing him so closely in public.  
   
It indicated to him that Hiroki must have truly terrified Yuu to an extent, and the blond CEO was immediately furious, his arms reaching up behind Yuu’s back to press him deeper into his embrace. Yuu sank his face into Kouyou’s chest, letting out a soft whimper at the feeling of finally reuniting with the blond he so loved. They’d barely been apart for thirty minutes, and yet Yuu already couldn’t do without him. Yuu never wanted to leave Kouyou’s side for too long ever again – and Kouyou felt the same, thinking to himself to keep a more watchful eye on the things happening around Yuu.  
   
“I thought you said you wanted to keep a hands-off policy between us in public,” Kouyou still teased, albeit quietly, his lips brushing past Yuu’s ear as he spoke, not in his usual erotic manner, more so his tender, protective manner. Yuu had chills alone from Kouyou’s fleeting touches, and it slowly relaxed Yuu’s erratically thrashing heart, calming his nerves and making it easier for him to inhale air. Kouyou always made him feel so at peace, so at home, so complete with himself. Moments before, Yuu had been too terrified to even _breathe_. Now, Yuu had almost forgotten the reason he’d been so frightened in the first place. Kouyou would come and get him. Kouyou always came to get him.  
   
_Fuck_ independence. Yuu could be independent in this job, yes, but it didn’t matter who saw them kissing and hugging at work, and who thought it was professional or unprofessional anymore. Yuu didn’t like being hit on by other men, he didn’t like being touched by other men, and he didn’t like people not knowing he was fully Kouyou’s. He wanted – no, _needed_ – everyone to know he was owned by Kouyou, wholesomely and thoroughly, and no one else could get to him, when his entire body and soul already belonged to another man’s. He already belonged to _Kouyou_ – who pretty much owned everyone’s asses here, so long as they worked in this building that was left in Kouyou’s charge.  
   
“I was waiting for you to come,” Yuu whispered, clutching Kouyou tight, his eyes bleary and moist with evidence of fear. “And you came.”  
   
Kouyou’s heart squeezed, having never been able to withstand the sight of Yuu being vulnerable, looking so petrified and afraid of his surroundings. Yuu needed Kouyou to feel safe, and Kouyou knew it, too. In fact, it was probably a guilty pleasure of his, to relish in this feeling of being needed, of being able to serve as protection for his lover. And perhaps it had been a mistake to give in to Yuu and allow him to work here. Kouyou had always feared something like _this_ – someone blatantly taking advantage of the attractive twenty-three year old – would happen. Yuu was too fragile, too young, too precious to Kouyou, and Kouyou wanted to do everything within his power to prevent Yuu from being in contact with anything that could potentially harm him.  
   
“I was busy finishing up some work,” Kouyou murmured regretfully, fingers playing lightly with the ends of Yuu’s ponytail. Yuu eased into his touch. “I’ll come sooner, next time. The meeting’s about to start, sweetheart. We’ll take our seats, okay?”  
   
Yuu nodded his head, then pulled back from Kouyou’s chest, raising up his head to meet his lover’s eyes solemnly. “I’m sorry for making a ruckus.” The room had gone extremely quiet since Kouyou entered the room, and no doubt everyone’s eyes were now drawn to the affectionate sight before them, affirming the fact that Kouyou’s secretary was unmistakably his fiancé. Yuu had planned to keep everything on the downlow; hadn’t wanted too many people to know of his relationship with Kouyou, but right now it didn’t matter to him who knew anymore.  
   
“It’s okay, Yuu,” Kouyou pressed his lips tenderly against the raven’s forehead as a form of comfort. “It doesn’t matter to me.” The rest of the people in the room tore their eyes away, unable to tell if they had a right to watch such an intimate gesture between their CEO and his lover.  
   
Clearing his throat, Kouyou abruptly turned his gaze sharply to Hiroki cowering in the distance, knowing he was in a predicament now that he realized he’d been inappropriately flirting with his boss’ partner. Kouyou’s wrath became apparent as he shot Hiroki a murderous glare, pressing Yuu tighter into his embrace at the very memory of Hiroki harrassing his raven-haired fiancé.  
   
“I’ll have a word with you after the meeting has ended,” Kouyou demanded, not taking too kindly upon the thought of _any_ man touching his Yuu, especially not a man working under his company. Yuu silently smiled to himself at Kouyou’s words, lifting his head up to see his perpetrator. Hiroki turned out to be a man with average enough looks, looking to be in his late twenties, his face long gone into contemplative shock. He was probably wondering if he was going to be fired after the meeting, and honestly? Yuu wondered if Hiroki was, too. Yuu knew his lover inside out; Yuu knew Kouyou was beyond possessive and prideful, and though it was a trait of his that Kouyou was still working on improving upon, Yuu couldn’t deny the fact that he _liked_ certain parts of it. Kouyou wasn’t one to forgive too easily when it came to things, or people, that threatened to take Yuu away from his grasp, and Yuu knew sacking Hiroki from his job just because he lay a finger on Yuu was a very possible thing for Kouyou to do.  
   
Either way, Hiroki was _fucked_. But most importantly, Yuu had Kouyou’s arms back around him again, and that was all that mattered to him. For now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> how much do I like damsel in distress AUs? about 98%. how much do I hate myself for liking damsel in distress AUs? about 90%. I'm sorry, I can't help it~~~ Yuu's so cute! <3 bahahaha he's trying his best to be independent but he still needs Kouyou's seme arms around him, poor baby. <3 he's like a little kitten that wanted to venture out on his own. XD "I'M GONNA VENTURE OUT AND BE INDEPENDENT FOR ONCE!!!! I DON'T NEED U KOUYOU!!!!!" ...falls flat. starts crying XD Kouyou picks him up-- "there, there. it's ok." Yuu: "sniFF I.... I was waiting for you to come!!!!!" Kouyou: "yes yes it's my fault for not coming earlier" /he'd wanted to come earlier but Yuu had told him to gtfo XD
> 
> comments are so loved as usual. <33
> 
> //shameless self-promotion time// by the way, I've started a new Ruki/Aoi story called Redefined [here](http://archiveofourown.org/works/6258445), and it starts off with Kouyou/Yuu too :D and I've added more black moral items to my sales post [here](http://sweetlolixo.livejournal.com/228910.html), incase you find anything you're interested in~


	54. the Office IV

Sexual harassment aside, the meeting passed by without a hitch. Yuu sat next to Kouyou and faithfully recorded minutes, recording down every piece of information lest Kouyou needed to re-visit any one of them. It was his first time sitting in on a meeting like this as a secretary, and some part of him was still nervous about it, however Kouyou never stopped glancing to him every once in a while with a gentle look, routinely checking in on how Yuu was faring; and it gave Yuu enough encouragement to lose the fear. Yuu felt absolutely awful for having allowed his anxiety show. It was only the second day of work, but Kouyou could already tell how highly strung the raven was, and Yuu had wanted to relieve Kouyou of his stress by working for him, _not_ add burden onto him. Now Kouyou had to worry about Yuu and his well-being at work, and Yuu hated such a fact. He knew he’d have to find a way to solve that as soon as he could.  
   
Towards the end of the meeting, after the two teams had finished with their sales pitches, they stood before the table, anxiously awaiting for the CEO’s evaluation of their hard work. Kouyou had his arms folded all these while, a vacant look on his face, appearing almost unimpressed with the presentations he’d just watched. It was too hard to figure out the CEO’s thoughts from those impassive eyes alone, and as Yuu looked to Kouyou, he noted to himself how he’d feel uneasy, too, had he been the one presenting, only to attain such a look from Kouyou in return.  
   
But despite all that had happened in the past day, Yuu was still incredibly delighted to be seated next to Kouyou like this, a book in hand, and a pen in the other. Yuu had been diligent in his work, doing anything that Kouyou had asked him to, and Yuu would like to think that he’d helped Kouyou in some ways at least, in ways that Chiaki used to. It felt nice, being able to do work alongside with Kouyou; being able to do constructive work with relevance to Kouyou’s career. Usually Yuu spent his days studying or out with friends like Takanori, and he really only got to spend time with Kouyou from the evening onwards, by making him dinner and listening to him talk about his day. Now, Yuu was _actually_ being productive, doing more than just whipping up home-cooked meals for his fiancé. Yuu was helping Kouyou every step of the way of his work. Yuu was more than just a domestic partner to come home to.  
   
“We’d like to know what you thought of our work, if you may,” one of the members of the sales team voiced out, her eyes hopeful as she looked to Kouyou.  
   
Kouyou took a moment to answer, un-crossing his arms and then crossing them again, as if prolonging the silence – and torture – of making them wonder if they’d done well in positively impacting the blond or not. When he finally moved his lips to speak, his head was turning to Yuu, his mouth curling up into a supportive smile. Yuu blinked to him curiously, wondering what Kouyou possibly needed of him.  
   
“Yuu, what did you think of their pitches?” Kouyou asked, stunning Yuu so much with his one question that the only thing that left the raven’s mouth was a constricted whisper.  
   
_No way._  
   
“Me?” Yuu questioned, puzzled as to what Kouyou was trying to do here. What had Yuu’s opinion on their presentations have to do with anything? They sought advice from their CEO, _not_ from some lowly secretary. Yuu had next to no experience in this industry – and certainly not as much as any other person in this room. Why was Kouyou asking _him_?  
   
Kouyou chuckled, having expected Yuu’s surprise. “Yes, you. Let’s start with the first team. What did you think?”  
   
Yuu felt all eyes land upon him instantly. _Fuck._ Did Kouyou ever do this to Chiaki? Was this even part of the job description? Was Kouyou _testing_ him? As Yuu’s eyes flitted quickly back to the notes he had jotted down over the course of the meeting in hand, the raven-haired attempted to conjure up his thoughts coherently, hoping they were passable enough _not_ to have him get laughed at. This was way too much pressure for his second day at work. Kouyou was even more merciless than actual internship supervisors out there.  
   
“Well… I, um, I thought the first team had a concrete business problem that we could really work on, it’s something that we definitely can tap upon,” Yuu began softly, hoping he was already sounding intelligent enough. He registered quietly in his mind that members of the sales team had already pulled out notebooks of their own to make note of Yuu’s comments, and the sight practically horrified the raven-haired. They were taking him _seriously_ , so there was no way in hell he could fuck this up.  
   
“I just feel there’s not enough insights onto the market we’re trying to target, and because of that, there’s still a lot of uncertainty in the air about what can actually be accomplished without such important understandings. There are many possible executions that we could work on with the kind of plan you’ve lay out, though, which I feel will all be potentially great ideas, nonetheless. I’d love to know all the possible routes.”  
   
Yuu’s eyes darted over quickly to Kouyou’s, hoping the older man hadn’t found anything to laugh at the raven-haired for. Thankfully for Yuu, Kouyou simply wore a pleased smile on his lips, looking thrilled with all the points Yuu had raised up. Yuu took it as a good sign, and his frantically beating heart immediately went lax, feeling more at ease now that Kouyou seemed impressed by his evaluation so far.  
   
“That’s great to hear. What about the second team, Yuu?” There was a further hint of amusement on Kouyou’s face as he questioned the raven-haired this, and Yuu sulked to himself, knowing that Kouyou must be having so much fun on his end, pushing Yuu into the corner like this. There was an odd sensation in his chest, though, now that Yuu had gotten approval from Kouyou for what he’d said thus far. Yuu felt a bubbling of exhilaration building up inside of him, a sensation that was so unfamiliar to him but so… _welcoming_. It was exciting Yuu; it was nearly making Yuu eager to present himself to others.  
   
Looking down to his notes again, Yuu spoke louder this time with newfound confidence, already forgetting his nervousness from before. “Well, the communication’s problem not something new, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it’s an existing notion that is constantly being revised to be improved for the better. I’m slightly worried about the points they raised about incorporating multiple creative disciplines because it might be too much for a homogenous-minded audience. Perhaps we should stick with one or two platforms, test for the market’s reaction, and see what comes out of it first. Since this team’s plan is riskier than the first, it’d be best if we made a mock-up plan and tested the grounds, before formulating a final, conclusive idea that would reach our definite goal.”  
   
Yuu hadn’t realized how serious he was looking, and sounding, until Kouyou broke into a couple of chuckles and a raised eyebrow as he stared to Yuu’s resolute expression, having never seen such a side to Yuu before. The CEO then turned his head back to the sales teams, wrapping up the meeting quickly with his words.  
   
“You heard what he said. Good work, I like what I’m hearing so far, and both plans are workable to me. Based on the points raised, I’d like a final, revised proposal – keep it short and sweet. Miyu, email me your thoughts and decisions on the teams, and I’ll give the go-ahead when necessary. Otherwise, the meeting is done. I’ll see you again if need be.”  
   
And that was it. Yuu was nearly in shock, having not expected Kouyou to have gone along with his criticism and opinions. Yuu was _barely_ a professional. Kouyou didn’t say another word, though, and only gave a nod of commendation into Yuu’s direction, causing Yuu’s heart to flutter one last time in the meeting.  
   
As everyone started filing out of the meeting room, Yuu stood up from his seat and began gathering the multiple empty cups of coffee spread out on the conference table back onto his tray. Kouyou noticed this from his position and immediately sat up, watching Yuu with a frown, still upset at the fact that Yuu had to clean up other people’s messes as part of his jobscope.  
   
“It’s okay, Kou,” Yuu sighed out softly, feeling the blond’s intense stare on him burn right through him. “You don’t have to look at me like I’m being forced into slavery. I’m doing this because I want to.”  
   
Kouyou made a low grunt. “It doesn’t mean I have to like it.” Yuu wondered how agonizing it must be from his end to be seeing his lover be subjected to such menial tasks. Judging by the pained look in Kouyou’s eyes, Yuu was certain Kouyou was already regretting allowing this to happen.  
   
Yuu answered with a wide smile. “Well, get used to it.”  
   
“Uh, sir, sorry for interrupting, but you said you wanted to see me?” came a few knocks upon the door from behind. The room was essentially empty by now, leaving just Yuu and Kouyou to converse quietly amongst themselves. Yuu didn’t have to turn his head back to realize who the intruder was – the minute Kouyou’s calm and pleasant demeanor slowly changed and the features on his face twisted in all-familiar anger, Yuu knew it must be no one but Hiroki standing at the door.  
   
“Come in and close the door behind you,” Kouyou barked, crouching forward in his seat, showing absolutely no remorse with the kind of brutally sharp tone he was inflicting upon the perverse man. Hiroki’s face turned pale white; he had no choice but to inch his way back into the meeting room and shut the door close, knowing he was walking right into a death sentence with no way out of it. Damn. Yuu was almost starting to pity him. Kouyou could get _so_ terrifying at times.  
   
Hiroki only managed to take a few steps into Kouyou’s direction before the angered CEO halted him in his tracks. The man looked stricken with fear, wondering what possibly Kouyou was planning to do with him. It wasn’t as if Yuu would feel particularly guilty if Hiroki lost his job over this, but _even_ the raven-haired wasn’t sure what his fiancé was going to do.  
   
“Remain standing,” Kouyou dictated harshly, then abruptly turned to face Yuu next to him, speaking in a much gentler tone with his lover. “Come here, baby. Sit with me.”  
   
Yuu was confused as to what Kouyou was trying to accomplish, but complied, and soon found himself seated down against Kouyou’s lap, his back colliding against Kouyou’s sturdy chest, with the blond’s thick arms wounding protectively around Yuu’s waist. Yuu had to hold back his blush at how intimately Kouyou was grasping him in front of a stranger; it was as if Kouyou was trying to assert his dominance over Yuu in front of someone else, to make sure Hiroki knew Yuu was already claimed territory, to clearly show the differences between Kouyou and Hiroki and how there was _no_ way in living hell Yuu would ever choose Hiroki over his dashing CEO lover.  
   
“I, um,” Hiroki nervously began in a weak voice, keeping his head low, though his eyes still flickered back up to meet his boss’s ones every now and then. “I’m really sorry, sir. I… I didn’t know he was your partner, s…sir. I, um, was just playing around with him… It was nothing more than a bad joke. I’m really sorry, sir, it’ll never happen again.”  
   
What a bastard, Yuu thought to himself, resentful at the thought that Hiroki was trying to get away with his antics by playing all of it off as just some stupid joke. It was completely disgusting the way men like him acted sometimes – thought it to be in their right to act the way they do, and when they finally get caught, play it off as the victim’s fault for overreacting when it was all just ‘fun and games’ to them. Yuu was sure Kouyou was intelligent enough to realize Hiroki was lying right through his goddamn teeth, and true enough, as he looked to Kouyou to gauge his reaction, the man was _boiling_.  
   
Kouyou’s mouth broke apart into a crude laugh, almost going into hysterics, finding it in himself to play along with Hiroki’s explanation. Yuu shivered as the blond tightened his hold around the raven, fingers almost digging right into his skin. Fuck. The older man truly was angry.  
   
“Oh, _Hiroki_ , it was just a joke, is that it?”  
   
Hiroki didn’t seem to detect the sarcasm, and laughed along, appearing relieved that his boss was slowly lightening up. “Yeah, _ha-ha_ , it really wasn’t anything serious, just a little joke or two…”   
   
“Babydoll,” Kouyou’s lips grazed past up Yuu’s ear, his voice in a sweet, affectionate whisper. He kept his wrathful, piercing eyes locked on Hiroki, his mouth curling up into a deadly, poisonous smile. “Will you let me know whether you thought what Hiroki was doing to you was a joke or not?” The blond nuzzled his head against Yuu’s neck, pressing his lips comfortingly against Yuu’s skin.  
   
Yuu shook his head, frowning. “I didn’t think it was a joke.” The smile on Hiroki’s face instantly melted off.  
   
“No, it didn’t look at all like a joke to me, either,” Kouyou agreed viciously, gripping Yuu’s body close to him. “And you know how protective I am of you, babydoll. You’ll understand if I can’t take this lying down from a person like _him_ , right?” It was almost frightening, just how casually Kouyou was speaking about Hiroki as if he were no longer there.  
   
Yuu thought Kouyou would have chosen to murder him right then and there if killing someone wasn’t an actual legal offence. Seriously – Kouyou was well fit to be a mafia boss.  
   
Hiroki probably understood by now he was in more than just deep shit, and so sought to alleviate some of that anger of his. “S…Sir, please, it won’t happen again, I know better than to ever mess with Yuu again–”  
   
Immediately breaking out of his composed façade, Kouyou erupted with a fury temper, raising his voice incredulously at Hiroki. “Happen again?! _Again_?! You think I’ll even let you have the opportunity for this to even happen _again_?!”  
   
“S…Sir, that wasn’t my intention at all…”  
   
For a moment Yuu was startled when Kouyou whispered lovingly in his ear for the raven-haired to get off him, so that the blond could stand up. Yuu listened to his instructions obediently, allowing Kouyou to get up from his seat, and watched wide-eyed as Kouyou began taking intimidating steps towards Hiroki, so much so that the shorter man had started trembling with sick trepidation.  
   
The room suddenly went so quiet, and grew so thick with tension that Yuu was positive Hiroki thought he was about to be strangled with Kouyou’s bare hands in the next second. Kouyou’s feet stopped short with his face merely a few inches away from Hiroki’s one, and as they stood side by side like this, it was so easy to tell who was the alpha male in the situation. Yuu partially swooned at the sight of the blond so readily coming to his defence like this; standing much taller, much bigger, way more handsome, and way more confident than his shorter subordinate. Hiroki attempted to lower his eyes in panic, but Kouyou’s gaze on him remained resolute and threatening, and Hiroki knew better than to avert his eyes rudely away from his boss.  
   
“Now, you fucking listen here, Hiroki,” Kouyou spat out, his hands closing into fists, his mouth quickly spewing forth seething words that shook Hiroki right into stillness. “You are _not_ going to step within sight of Yuu ever again – I don’t fucking care what excuses you give me. You are not going to speak to him again, you will _never_ interact with him again, and if you step into a room and you see that Yuu is in it, you excuse yourself and you take that step back out of the room immediately and get the hell lost. If–”  
   
Kouyou took a second to glance back to the doe-eyed raven standing behind him, the blond’s eyes softening at the sight of his beautiful fiancé, hating the thought of Yuu ever having to be subjected to such humiliation by the likes of Hiroki again. Yuu’s heart leapt in his chest, happy to feel Kouyou’s gentle gaze on him again. Kouyou always thought of him no matter what. He’d never stopped prioritizing Yuu from day one.  
   
“If I see you near Yuu again,” Kouyou snarled, turning his attention brusquely back to Hiroki’s face. “You’re not going to like the consequences, Hiroki. But I am. In fact, I’ll _relish_ in it. You think you know the kind of person I turn into when I’m provoked, Hiroki? Because I do. And I’m going to enjoy wringing the life right out of you, right before your eyes. Do I make myself perfectly clear?”   
   
God, Yuu _shouldn’t_ find Kouyou so attractive like this – especially since the man had just delivered a death threat – but holy _hell_ Kouyou was so hot when he was asserting his authority like this, all just to protect Yuu’s dignity. Towering almost a head over Hiroki, Kouyou could _so_ easily give Hiroki a good thrashing with just his bare fists alone, and though it wasn’t something that Yuu wanted to be done – Yuu never liked violence – but the knowledge that Kouyou could so easily overpower Hiroki with his strength alone made Yuu quiver with want.  
   
Fuck. Was Yuu seriously getting turned on by his fiancé in such a precarious situation?  
   
“S-Sir, I understand, s-sir, I’m s-so sorry, I…” Hiroki apologized endlessly, petrified out of his wits. Yuu was surprised his balls hadn’t fallen off midway the conversation, already. Kouyou had _that_ kind of effect on people.  
   
“Stop apologizing to me,” Kouyou raised a finger, pointing it crisply into Yuu’s direction. “Apologize to the innocent victim you so eagerly assaulted without a thought.”  
   
Slight unease ignited deep within Yuu’s eyes as Hiroki began taking steps into his direction, but thankfully Kouyou noticed how uncomfortable Hiroki’s presence was already making Yuu and the blond hurriedly put a stop to it. Extending a hand to grip firmly at the side of Hiroki’s arm, effectively pulling him to a standstill, Kouyou gestured for Hiroki to remain rooted to his position.  
   
“Just apologize to him from here,” Kouyou ordered.  
   
Hiroki’s face was filled with more terror than guilt at the feeling of his boss’s hand seizing his arm.  
   
“I’m really sorry for my actions, Yuu.”  
   
“And say you’re sorry for being an asshole who needs to get it together and stop playing your perverse desires off as ‘jokes’.” Kouyou added on, ruthlessly.  
   
“I’m… I’m sorry for being an asshole.” Hiroki fidgeted restlessly as he spoke, barely keeping it together anymore. Some humane part of Yuu began to realize how terrifying this entire experience must be for his poor soul, and suddenly Yuu didn’t feel like prolonging this confrontation session any longer.  
   
It wasn’t worth it, anyway. Yuu had gotten his apology, and now all he wanted was to be alone with Kouyou and be held by him again. Yuu wasn’t getting any kind of satisfaction from all this psychological torture being inflicted onto Hiroki, though he couldn’t say the same for his fiancé.  
   
“That’s enough,” Yuu said quietly, turning his eyes away from Hiroki, and looking over to meet Kouyou’s concerned gaze instead. “Kou… Just ask him to leave.”  
   
“You consider _that_ an apology? He hardly apologized, Yuu.” Kouyou questioned, not aware that he was inadvertently raising his voice at Yuu, and Yuu was quickly recoiling in surprise. The raven stared to him in a state of confusion, wondering if Kouyou was going to go against his wishes to end this already. Kouyou always listened to him; but Yuu could see why Kouyou was reluctant to let Hiroki go so easily after what he did to Yuu. Yuu just didn’t want to be subjected to being in the same room as him for any longer, and he hoped Kouyou could understand why he felt that way.  
   
Upon registering in his mind that Yuu _really_ wanted Hiroki to be gone already, Kouyou made a low grunt, releasing his tight grip on Hiroki. He wouldn’t ever go against what Yuu wanted, but it still made him sore to let Hiroki go so soon after just a little warning or two.  
   
“I’m not going to fire you today, but I’m going to be telling Miyu, and several others, to keep a close eye on you. If I ever hear of any sexual harassing incidents with relation to you again, you can be rest assured I’ll make sure you never get hired in this industry again.”  
   
And Hiroki was well aware just how effortless Kouyou could achieve that, simply by spreading word of Hiroki’s bad reputation.  
   
“I u-unders-stand, s-sir,” Hiroki nodded, shaking so much Yuu thought he was on the verge of convulsing.  
   
“Now get the hell out of my sight.” Kouyou growled, pointing straight to the door, sending Hiroki well on his way back to work.  
   
Hiroki was out of the room in mere seconds, scurrying off like mice.  
   
Yuu found himself finally able to breathe normally again, always preferring it much better when he was alone with his lover again. Kouyou’s fury disappeared the instant Hiroki was out the door. Taking careful steps towards his raven-haired princess, Kouyou kissed the top of Yuu’s head, letting out a troubled sigh as Yuu’s head automatically fell back against his chest. Yuu eased his eyes shut as he hugged Kouyou close to him, happy to be embracing Kouyou like this again.  
   
“Let’s head back up to my office,” Kouyou said in an upset whisper. “We’ll talk more up there.”  
   
Yuu simply nodded, knowing much better than anyone else just what Kouyou was planning to speak to him about.  
   
And Yuu’s answer was still _no_.  
   
~  
   
Kouyou didn’t appear too concerned about his work anymore, not when Yuu had just suffered such a traumatizing experience at the meeting room. Now that they had the privacy of Kouyou’s office to shield them from unwanted onlookers, Yuu felt much more comfortable crawling up onto Kouyou’s lap, seating his ass right on the blond’s thighs as Kouyou reclined back in his black office chair. Kouyou rested his hands up against the sides of Yuu’s face, admiring the raven’s sweet countenance staring right down at him. There was still a mischevious, playful look in the raven’s eyes, and Kouyou couldn’t resist a small smile at such a sight, his heart reverberating non-stop inside his chest, full of love for the younger man.  
   
“You don’t have to do this, you know,” Kouyou begun, already anticipating the defiant, stubborn expression Yuu would wear for him.  
   
Yuu wouldn’t hear any of it. “No,” the raven-haired protested, folding his arms together. “It’s only day two. I can’t quit. I’m not a quitter.”  
   
“I’ll write a good testimonial for you to get your college credits,” Kouyou persuaded, his fingers caressing past Yuu’s soft skin. “You don’t really have to be here. I’d feel better if you spent more time with Takanori doing something like baking instead.”  
   
“Uh, that’s considered cheating, and I could get suspended from college,” Yuu dutifully informed, poking at Kouyou’s nose accusingly with a finger. “Why are you trying to jeopardize my college education?”  
   
Kouyou frowned unhappily at the allegation. “You know I’m not trying to do that, babydoll. And honestly, your college would never find out. And even if they did, I have enough money to pay them to keep their mouth right shut. You don’t really need to force yourself to be here to work for me–”  
   
“I’m tired of arguing with you about this,” Yuu cut Kouyou off short, pouting, and his words were enough to keep Kouyou from disputing with him any further. Kouyou was always at a loss of what to do when Yuu was being uncompromising like this – but it wasn’t like Kouyou had the heart to not let Yuu have his way either.  
   
“I just don’t want you to get hurt,” Kouyou gazed up, distraught, into Yuu’s obstinate orbs. “You know that’s all I want, Yuu.” And Yuu knew that; he understood Kouyou so perfectly since so long ago.  
   
“But you seemed pretty willing to hurt other people… like Hiroki, back there,” Yuu teased, his lips spreading apart to show his pearly white teeth as he smiled. Kouyou found Yuu’s smile so, _so_ infectious. “You’re really such a bully, you know that, mister CEO?”  
   
“He’s lucky to be alive, and you know it,” Kouyou teased back, breaking into a hearty smile himself. His fingers ran up past Yuu’s hair, mindlessly playing with the high ponytail Yuu was wearing.  
   
“You’re not really going to murder him if he – hypothetically – lays a finger on me again, are you?” Yuu asked quizzically, wondering if Kouyou was truly making good on his word of _wringing the dear life out of him_. Kouyou was so spontaneous sometimes, Yuu wasn’t too sure what to believe from his fiancé.  
   
“Well, I won’t murder him _myself_ ,” Kouyou answered wistfully. “That’s not how the higher-ups do things, you know. I never personally get my hands dirty with these things.”  
   
“Oh, so you’re the type to hire a hitman,” Yuu giggled, and his giggles quickly drew out a crazed smile upon Kouyou’s lips.  
   
“They can make any death look like a suicide,” Kouyou explained, laying a soft kiss atop Yuu’s shoulder.  
   
“You’re more dangerous than I thought,” Yuu poked the side of Kouyou’s cheek cutely. “And I thought I already knew every inch of your mind from these two years I’ve been with you.”  
   
“You know I love springing up surprises onto you,” Kouyou pointed out cheekily, his lips diving in for another kiss.  
   
“No, but honestly,” Yuu pulled away unexpectedly from Kouyou’s arms, sending the blond straight into bewilderment. “That death threat… You weren’t going to act on it, were you? You didn’t even fire him for a reason. That was all just an act of intimidation, wasn’t it?”  
   
And Yuu didn’t know why it was so important, to address this and get it right, but Yuu simply wanted to be reassured of the fact that Kouyou wasn’t the bloodthirsty man he knew Hiroki saw in the room; Yuu wanted to know that despite all of his anger, Kouyou wouldn’t have seriously considered taking someone’s life so thoughtlessly like this.  
   
“You seem concerned,” Kouyou flickered his eyes up to Yuu’s, apprehension apparent on his face. “You’re really worried about this, aren’t you?” But it’s not as if Kouyou could blame Yuu for his worry – Kouyou understood how fearsome he could get at his workplace sometimes, and now that Yuu was working with him, the raven was going to be seeing so much more than the gentle lover Yuu was used to greeting back at home.  
   
“It’s not like I’m scared of you,” Yuu quickly cleared up, and he thought he saw Kouyou’s face relax a little. That very notion tugged at his heart. “Kou, you know that’s not it.”  
   
“You’re just worried you agreed to marry a homicidal sociopath,” Kouyou sucked in a long breath. “No, it’s okay, Yuu, I understand where you’re coming from.”  
   
“I know you’re a good person,” Guilt swept over Yuu’s eyes. He knew just how sensitive Kouyou as a person was, and he knew any wrong word uttered might send Kouyou very quickly into self-doubt again. “I know you let Hiroki keep his job for a reason.”  
   
“Yuu… it’s just,” Kouyou answered with a soft sigh, finding no reason to lie about his motives. “I just didn’t want him to even _think_ of hurting you again. Yuu, I couldn’t take that risk. And you’ve seen me around here at work. You know I’m not very… accommodating. I needed to be convincing enough so he wouldn’t ever think of hurting you again. Or anyone else, for that matter. Word around the office travels fast. Once they realize how important you are to me, everyone else will think twice about even so much as looking at you the wrong way.”  
   
_Ah._ Yuu beamed brightly up to him, finally understanding what Kouyou had been trying to do from before. The blond hadn’t been particularly vicious without any reason whatsoever; the older man had only wanted to ensure Yuu’s safety from today forth. And the raven’s only take-away from all of this was –  
   
“You’re not a murderer.”  
   
“Stop looking so relieved,” Kouyou laughed out, gazing into Yuu’s eyes incredulously. “You’re wounding my feelings that you even thought me as such in the first place.”  
   
“You didn’t fire him, too,” Yuu brought up. “Why? Sexual harassment is a reason valid enough to sack someone from their job, right?”  
   
“Why, did you want him to be sacked?” Kouyou cocked an eyebrow up. “Because I still can change my mind about it, you know. Give him a call, tell him to pack his things up and leave.”  
   
“He’s an asshole,” Yuu frowned. “But he’s your employee. You make the call.”  
   
“Well,” Kouyou began with an exasperated sigh, the smile on his face gently sliding off. “I know for a fact that he’s an only child, and he has a terminally ill mother to support.”  
   
Wait.  
   
_Wait._ A sick mother? An only child? Hiroki – that asshole – had such a sorry plight to deal with? No wonder Kouyou suddenly had such a heart of gold; the blond wouldn’t have thought twice about firing Hiroki had he held a more privileged life.  
   
Ah. So now this explained everything.  
   
Yuu’s eyes gradually illuminated with realization. “Wow. Do you know all of your employees’ backgrounds?”  
   
“Hn.” Kouyou looked into Yuu’s eyes, responding rather tongue-in-cheek. “Well, I know yours.”  
   
Yuu delivered a playful punch to Kouyou’s chest. “Not me! Others.”  
   
“I try my best to know everything around here,” Kouyou chuckled, his arms reaching forward to wrap around Yuu’s hips. “Hmm… Why are you interested suddenly in how I treat my employees?”  
   
“Well…” Yuu tried to be coy, his eyes teasing. “Maybe it’s because I always thought my boyfriend had no heart, but I’m beginning to realize he has a heart bigger than anyone else I know.” And then the raven-haired was happily leaning over to plant a kiss adorably onto Kouyou’s cheek, turning the CEO’s cheeks a light shade of pink thereafter. Kouyou never could resist the younger man when he was acting so playful and flirtatious.  
   
“Oi,” Kouyou glared up to him, though his heart secretly delighted in the kiss. “What ‘boyfriend’? It’s fiancé. How did I suddenly lose my fiancé status in just ten seconds?”  
   
“I thought boyfriend sounded cuter in that context,” Yuu answered, suddenly feisty with his responses. “Fiancé sounds too serious, at times.”  
   
Kouyou faked a glare to him. “It’s going to be ‘husband’ soon, and if you call me your boyfriend when it’s supposed to be ‘husband’, I’m going to be pretty pissed.”  
   
“I guess my fiancé’s back at it again with the cold, dead ass heart.”  
   
“Ah. There it is.” Kouyou grinned, happy once more with what he was hearing.  
   
“What can you possibly do to me anyway? You never get angry at me,” Yuu sulked.  
   
“I can’t get angry at you, but I can always make you do _things_.” Kouyou glanced into the far-off distance with a smirk.  
   
“Like what.” The raven snorted.  
   
“I don’t know yet,” the older man claimed, his palms quickly travelling down Yuu’s hips, to cup against his round bottoms. “We have a pretty elaborate selection of lingerie back at home.  I have all the time in the world to decide.”  
   
Yuu wriggled his ass in Kouyou’s grasp. “Technically, you can’t _make_ me do anything I don’t want to.”  
   
Kouyou raised an eyebrow. “Why do you keep underestimating what I can do?”  
   
“You think that just because you’re so hot, you can make me do anything for you.”  
   
“Hn. I’m happy that instead of adjectives like ‘rich’, or ‘charismatic’, you choose to use the word ‘hot’ to describe me.”  
   
“So sue me. I can’t deny my boyfriend’s attractiveness.”  
   
“Oi.”  
   
“Sorry, _husband_.”  
   
“Skipping the ‘fiance’ stage and jumping straight into _husband_ territory. Impatient. But I like it.”  
   
“You’re so easy to appease.”  
   
“What can I say? I’m a man that’s easily contented.”  
   
“You’re so annoying,” Yuu laughed, pinching just the tip of Kouyou’s nose. “You know, what you did today was _not_ cool at all.”  
   
“What did I do again?” Kouyou asserted. “Why am I constantly getting yelled at by my sweet little princess? Just awhile ago, you thought I was a homicidal sociopath.”  
   
“You’re _my_ sociopath,” Yuu snuggled his head up into Kouyou’s neck. “And I’m referring to the fact that you made me give comments on those sales pitches that were prepared just for _you_ awhile ago. That was so embarrassing. I bet they were all wondering what I was doing, giving unprofessional comments like that! They wanted to hear your thoughts, not _mine._ ”  
   
Kouyou had a rather satisfied look on, almost like he was overly pleased with himself for having made Yuu do as such during the meeting.  
   
Yuu huffed the minute he saw self-satisfaction spread across Kouyou’s face. “Why do you look so happy with yourself?!”  
   
“You did a great job,” Kouyou sang, complimenting. Yuu’s face flushed a deep red. “I’m so proud of you, sweetheart.”  
   
“Did you ever make Chiaki do things like that?” Yuu addressed defensively.  
   
“Of course not,” Kouyou dryly responded. “Why would I? That’s not her job.”  
   
“Then why is it mine?!” Yuu scowled heavily to his lover.  
   
Kouyou looked to Yuu in disbelief, as if the answer was staring right at him in the face. “Because you’re going to be my life partner, and I want to give you the best opportunities to develop skills you otherwise wouldn’t usually get so early on in life. And it’s important, not only to evaluate people’s work like that, but to have the confidence and freedom to express yourself in front of other professionals in the field you’re working in. And no other CEO is going to give you an internship that will let you learn what you’re going to be able to learn on the job with me, and I want you to grow into the best person you can be. So yes, it may be embarrassing at first, but this is all good for you, babydoll. You don’t have to be afraid of trying out all these things when you’re with me.”  
   
Kouyou usually didn’t let their age difference make a very clear distinction in their relationship, for the older man was _always_ teasing Yuu and making sure they discussed topics that were well within Yuu’s intellectual range, but certain times – certain times like _now_ , Yuu felt Kouyou’s maturity far surpassed his. It was to be expected, for Kouyou was a good amount of years older than him, and had life experience that Yuu would never be able to catch up to him with. As equal as Kouyou always tried to treat Yuu, Yuu knew Kouyou still tried his best to help him in ways that only Kouyou could, with all the wisdom that his extra years gave him.  
   
And Yuu knew that he was lucky. Not anyone could just get a lover like Kouyou, someone that was so intellectually aware and sharp with his wits, someone with a drive that had led him to gain the recognition he deserved in his work today, someone that held an esteemed position in society that placed him on a higher pedestal than so many others. Plus, not only was Kouyou all of that, Kouyou was _willing_ to help Yuu out with his own education and life, too, and Yuu knew so many people would _die_ just to get an opportunity like this one. Yuu knew he was lucky, and incredibly blessed, to have Kouyou in his life, and he knew he couldn’t simply take the blond for granted.  
   
It was funny, actually, to put things into perspective. Yuu had only agreed to be with Kouyou – as a sugar baby – because of the wealth Kouyou held at first, but now, the older man was helping him in every aspect of his life, and Yuu couldn’t be anymore thankful. Kouyou meant everything to him – and Yuu was glad he meant the same to Kouyou, too.  
   
“Why do you always have to be right,” Yuu pulled a face to his lover, lightly punching him indignantly.  
   
“I only want to give you the best,” Kouyou smiled up to him. “For everything. You shouldn’t worry about anything when you’re with me. Besides, you did such a good job at the meeting. I was surprised, myself.”  
   
Yuu squinted suspiciously to the blond. “You thought I was going to fall flat on my ass, didn’t you.”  
   
“Well, I was expecting to have to help you out a little bit,” Kouyou admitted with a chuckle. “But a small part of me knew you would ace it, and you did.”  
   
“Hmph. You’re a terrible teacher, thinking so lowly of your student like that.”  
   
“Everyone has to fail first to know what success feels like,” Kouyou laughed, squeezing Yuu in his hold.  
   
Yuu lay his head back against Kouyou’s chest, resting happily in his embrace. They keep silent for a few moments, plainly enjoying basking in each other’s arms, before Yuu finds strength in him to speak again.  
   
“I take it back.”  
   
Kouyou hummed lightly to his voice. “You take what back?”  
   
“Well, you know how I always said you’d be a horrible boss to work for? I take it back.”  
   
Kouyou gave a wide, inquisitive smile. “Hn. So I’m not horrible?”  
   
“No,” Yuu fluttered his eyes shut, a contented smile on his lips.  
   
“You’re the kindest man I’ve ever met.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the long wait!!! 
> 
> comments are so appreciated as usual <3
> 
> Reituki next chap~
> 
> holy hell I just noticed I surpassed 300k+ words for SA :x


	55. the Office V

The morning a rather fun-sized brunet came skipping through the elevator doors and demanded haughtily to see a certain Suzuki Akira _urgently_ , for there had been a rather grotesque death in the family that needed immediate attention ASAP, Akira really wasn’t that surprised. He was only surprised Takanori hadn’t come demanding to look for him sooner.  
   
Said grotesque death ‘in the family’ turned out to be an excuse (see: threat) for Akira’s secretary to bring Takanori to see Akira immediately, for not a _single second could be delayed_ with such a monstrosity of a news that Takanori had to deliver to his lover.  
   
The minute Takanori was behind Akira’s closed office doors, the brunet was quickly turning the lock in the door and ensuring Akira had no sure-fireproof way of an escape unless it was through the glass windows of his office. And since Akira was situated on the second highest floor of a high-rise building that had approximately over 70 floors in height, Takanori didn’t think Akira would be using the window as his escape route at all, no.  
   
“ _Suzuki Akira_!”  
   
Akira wasn’t even fazed. He remained perfectly calm and poised, his eyes never leaving the stack of documents he held in his hand as he scanned through the wall of text he desperately needed to finish checking through by lunchtime.  
   
“Babe, can you stop faking deaths in our fictitious family just so you can barge into my office?”  
   
“Don’t speak to me like that, Mr. Suzuki.”  
   
“Do I need to buy you another hamster to occupy you at home? Send my regards to Koron.”  
   
“Koron doesn’t need your fake as plastic concern.”  
   
“Taka, that’s not even an actual lingo. Like, no one actually uses ‘fake as plastic’. You can’t just go around making up things like these, Taka. I thought you were majoring in English?”  
   
“Suzuki Akira, you cut that bullshit right now. You know _exactly_ why I’m here.”  
   
“Actually, I have about 5 different guesses as to why you’re here, and I’m not really sure which one it is. Let’s start. Did you _just_ discover the stain on that favourite Armani shirt you always wear?”  
   
“Wait. _There’s_ a stain on my favourite Armani shirt?!”  
   
“…OK, that crosses one out.”  
   
“Akira, you fucking bastard, you better own up to what those 4 other confessions are before I skin you alive…”  
   
It took Akira another half hour to placate Takanori that he would buy Takanori the same Armani shirt – brand new – as a replacement, and yes, he perfectly understood that it was _limited edition_ and _out of stock_ , but Akira had inside connections that he was certain would be able to get Takanori the same exact shirt without much trouble. As for the other 4 confessions, well; Akira narrowly avoided that by distracting Takanori with some flyers that Akira had received in the mail; flyers of some upcoming Versace sample sale.  
   
Takanori ultimately found his way up top Akira’s desk later, seating his ass right down onto Akira’s stack of work documents, effectively preventing his older lover from being able to proceed with his work. Takanori swung his legs back and forth, being purposefully difficult as usual, hitting into Akira’s thighs every now and then, leaving a very disgruntled Akira seated in his work chair, staring helplessly straight at Takanori’s face.  
   
Takanori was lucky he was so goddamn attractive.  
   
“Akiraaaaaa~”  
   
…And _there_ came that familiar cute-ass nasal whining. Akira had already resigned to his fate of agreeing to whatever Takanori was about to say; even without him vocalizing his plea for it yet.  
   
“Just use the platinum credit card I gave you, honey. I already told you, you don’t have to ask me for permission before purchasing anything.”  
   
For someone as high-maintenance as Takanori, you’d expect him to let loose a little when it came to financial matters; but surprisingly enough, the smaller man was rather considerate to Akira’s bank account – not that there was any need to be considerate, _after all_ , Akira was raking in tens of thousands of dollars per month – and Takanori often sought for Akira’s permission first before purchasing anything on the card the older man had given him.  
   
“I’m not here about the money,” Takanori groaned, leisurely stretching his arms up wide, mildly peeved that his lover had assumed as such of him _even_ before he’d stated what he was here for.  
   
“Would you kindly elaborate why you’re so urgently seeking for my attention, then?”  
   
“Maybe I’m just an attention whore,” Takanori let slip, snickering triumphantly to himself, cupping a hand over his mouth to mask some evil chuckles.  
   
Akira leaned back in his seat, brows furrowed, clasping his two hands together in deep thought. “That you are. But see, you can’t possibly be here this early in the day unless it was something urgent, because I know for a fact that the The Bachelor has re-runs at nine every morning.”  
   
“Gee, stalker,” Takanori eyed him rather skeptically. “Keeping tabs on my television-watching habits like that.”  
   
Akira had a perfectly straight face on as he delivered the news.  
   
“…Takanori, we live together.”  
   
“ _So anyway_ ,” Takanori cocked his head to the side, folding a slender leg over the other in his usual go-to seductive pose. Akira’s attention was quickly drawn to how _deliciously_ tight those leather pants the brunet had donned on were.  
   
“Akira, why didn’t you tell me you were looking for a new secretary?”  
   
Akira paused as Takanori’s words sunk down into him, suddenly realizing Takanori’s true intention for his appearance here. The brunet must have heard from Yuu that the raven had landed a new stint as Kouyou’s secretary, and thought Akira would be looking for the same. The older man was immediately uncertain as to how he should proceed forward in this conversation. He attempted to map out several routes of conversation immediately in his head, but all of them appeared to lead to a dead-end.  
   
…Fuck. There was no way he was getting out of this without giving in to Takanaori’s _for-sure_ request of being given a position here in this office as well.  
   
“Taka baby,” Akira cleared his throat, knowing he was going to have to do everything in his power to hold his ground for the next fifteen to twenty minutes of angry discussion (see: debate). “How do I put this gently…”  
   
_Very_ evidently, Akira’s words fell on deaf ears. “So, when do I start?!” Takanori grinned up to his lover, his eyes brimming full of enthusiasm and excitement. Damn. Akira was already full of guilt for something he _hadn’t_ even planned for. He always disliked breaking disappointing news to the brunet – Takanori deserved everything he could get in the world.  
   
“Taka,” Akira struggled to get his point across as kindly as possible, his heart growing heavy in his heart. “ _Kouyou_ was the one looking for a new, temporary secretary. That’s why I hired Yuu for a short stint. We badly needed someone for Kouyou, because Chiaki had gone on maternity leave.”  
   
“So?” Takanori smiled even wider to his beau. “When do _I_ start?”  
   
Akira stared to him, a dead-pan expression on his face. Sometimes he truly wondered if Takanori was unintentionally blockheaded, or simply overly optimistic. Or perhaps Takanori had gotten so used to getting everything he wanted with the older man so much, that being faced with rejection by Akira was an inplausible idea to him. Akira was just going to have to do this the hard way – be totally upfront and completely blunt with his words.  
   
“Taka… I don’t need a new secretary. I have Emiko.”  
   
The news hit Takanori like he’d been blind-sided by a speeding truck. He looked so sour in the next second; Akira felt as if he had accidentally blown out a five-year-old Takanori’s birthday candles on his cake.  
   
“That isn’t fair,” Takanori moped, though he didn’t look like he’d completely given up just yet.    
   
“Taka sweetheart, I’m really happy that you came to me of your own accord wanting to help me out around the office. But I don’t need it, really. Besides, you’d be so bored at work. It’s not very exciting around these parts, you know.”  
   
“I’m always excited when I’m with you,” Takanori frowned, pointing out.  
   
Akira felt his heart instantly squeeze at such an honestly uttered remark. “Really?”  
   
“Of course,” Takanori said as a matter-of-factly. “You don’t bore me.”  
   
“I… I’ll choose to take that as a compliment, thanks.”  
   
“Aww, come _on,_ babe, you know I love you,” Takanori laughed it off, and his words quickly elicited a small kiss from Akira, planted right against the tip of Takanori’s forehead. “Hn. But why does Yuu get to be hired and I don’t? Do you think he’s more capable than _me_?”  
   
“Of course not.” Akira muttered, disturbed that such a thought even occurred to his lover. “Taka baby, you know I think the highest of you. You’re the most capable person I know.”  
   
“So why can’t I get hired? This is such a big corporation; you guys have the budget for another intern.” Takanori argued, prepared to pull out all stops if he had to. “Come _on_. You can’t be the vice-president for nothing. You’re supposed to have authority around here!”  
   
Akira released a low sigh, hating himself for _even_ considering the idea of allowing Takanori to help out around the office. Takanori was right – Akira had power around here for a reason, and he’d be damned if he didn’t mis-use it every now and then. “Well, fine. Let’s say I employ you. Why do you even want to work here so much? Is it _just_ because Yuu’s here and you feel left out?”  
   
“That is _precisely_ why I’m–” Takanori stopped himself when he realized what exactly he was admitting to, decided against it, and promptly straightened up in his seat, a ferociously determined look in his eye. “Actually, Mr. Vice-President, I just thought it would be an incredibly eye-opening experience for me to intern here, and I just know I’ll be taking away _many_ valuable lessons from being able to venture into the corporate world under your care.”  
   
Akira had to hold back a chuckle at how convincing – and adorably _desperate_ – his lover was acting.  
   
“Taka, you’re only here because you’re getting lonely around the house without me, as well as the fact that Yuu can’t accompany you for lunch anymore.”  
   
Takanori sniffed, turning his nose up high. “I’m not going to answer that question until you tell me this job interview is over. Until then, I’m only going to answer you with politically correct answers.”  
   
Akira gazed to him, amused. “I didn’t realize I was conducting a job interview.”  
   
“This interview only ends when you tell me I’m hired.”  
   
The older man gave a loud snort. “What makes you so sure I’ll hire you?”  
   
“Akiraaaaaa~” Takanori finally gave up and began his usual whining, kicking his legs up into the air, resembling a spoilt kid throwing a wild tantrum. “Don’t you love me? Last night in bed, you said you wanted to give the world to meeee~”  
   
“Ah,” Akira ran a hand up his own hair rather suavely, avoiding Takanori’s pleading gaze. “But you see, the word ‘world’ has no fixed definition, and is subject to an individual’s own perspective. Also, you were kind of sucking my dick, so that was obligatory of me to say, no matter what.”  
   
“Suzuki, cut the crap. Just goddamn hire me already.”  
   
“That’s no way to talk to your soon-to-be boss, Taka.”  
   
“Wait. Did you just–”  
   
Takanori’s eyes widened open in elation.  
   
_Damn_ this small brunet for being able to read between the lines so quick.  
   
“Wait– _No_ – That was not– That was _not_ a job offer _,_ Takanori–”  
   
Fuck. What _had_ Akira accidentally done.  
   
“I’M HIRED!” Takanori yelled out animatedly, pumping a fist high up into the air.  
   
“Matsumoto Takanori, you stop with that shit-eating grin right now. I did _not_ agree to anything.”  
   
“I’ll do anything,” Takanori gyrated his hips excitedly and waved his hands up in the air in his bid to dance sensually against Akira’s office desk. “Come on! I’ll pick up coffee for you. Isn’t that what all interns do? They just pick up coffee and pretend to type at their desks? I’ll do all the menial tasks so Emiko doesn’t have to do them. Like, photocopy papers and shit. I can work a damn photocopier.”  
   
Akira narrowed his eyes at the oddly placed image the brunet had constructed in his mind. “Takanori, this isn’t going to be much fun.” And he wasn’t sure how long Takanori would last in this job, too. Takanori had never struck him as the type to work in dead-end 9-to-5 jobs, and the brunet would certainly tire of the job in no time. He didn’t want to subject Takanori to any unnecessary hardship that the brunet didn’t have to endure. Akira could take care of Takanori’s any whim and fancy, after all, and he much preferred the thought of Takanori being able to sit back and relax while Akira did all the dirty work for him.  
   
“Fine, I’ll admit it,” Takanori outwardly sulked, realizing that none of his tactics to persuade Akira to give him the job had worked yet; and that perhaps it was just best to admit his real reasons for coming here from the start. “I’m getting pretty lonely, _okay_?! I want to be around you more often. We already spend so little time together because of your work, so I want to be able to have an excuse to be around you all day. Is that enough reason for you to hire me? I just want to see my boyfriend.”  
   
Akira tried his hardest to keep himself from getting flustered at the brunet’s genuinely said words.  
   
“Taka baby… Is that really it?”  
   
Because Takanori so rarely revealed his vulnerable moments, and Akira knew better than to take it for granted whenever the brunet did. If his decision to allow Takanori to work around here meant a whole lot to the brunet, then Akira would have no qualms agreeing – _just_ so he could make Takanori happy. What was one more intern around the office, right? Akira didn’t see how Kouyou was going to disapprove of this, considering how much Akira was already putting up with the blond CEO on a daily basis. Not that Kouyou was a pain in the ass, but still. Akira could always negotiate his way out of this.  
   
“Well… I kind of also want to have more office sex...” Takanori admitted, all of a sudden twiddling around with his thumbs, an innocent look on his face.  
   
The older man was quickly drawn out of his sentimental thoughts with that one crude confession. “OK, Taka, romantic mood immediately ruined.”  
   
“But I’m still hired, right?” Takanori made a huge pout, ready to kick up another huge fuss if Akira wouldn’t give him what he wanted.  
   
Akira grunted. He had to admit; the promise of more office sex had got to him. He was such a normal and hot-blooded functioning _man_ , goddammit. Besides, it wasn’t like Takanori was going to stop pestering him for a job around here if Akira said ‘no’, anyway. Maybe that was why Takanori and Yuu made such good friends – they were both equally stubborn, and knew exactly how _willing_ their older lovers were to give in to their every qualm. The both of them were _truly_ going to be the death of him and Kouyou.  
   
“…Fine, you’re hired.”  
   
And so Akira’s nightmare began.  
   
~  
   
Takanori’s jobscope as ‘Vice-President’s Intern’ is to essentially – as he’d suggested earlier – assist Akira’s secretary in her duties. Takanori picked up the more menial tasks, such as buying coffee, delivering documents, working the photocopier, and setting up meeting rooms. Occasionally, Emiko would let Takanori respond to the more frivolous emails, and allow Takanori to try his hand at taking minutes for a meeting. Otherwise, Takanori’s job was pretty much manageable (almost frivolous), keeping him occupied for the most part of the day.  
   
Sometimes, on afternoons where Akira was out of the office for meetings with clients, Takanori would have moments where he didn’t _have_ to do anything, and he usually took to heading up to Kouyou’s office to bother his raven-haired best friend. Yuu had been shocked to hear Takanori had been hired at first, but he gradually warmed up to the idea when he found out how enjoyable and convenient it was to have his best friend working in the office just below him.  
   
Sometimes they would huddle up at Yuu’s desk and get caught giggling to themselves over some juicy office gossip by Kouyou; and Takanori wouldn’t miss the slight hesitance in the blond CEO’s eyes as he walked past Yuu’s cubicle and caught Takanori’s gaze. Takanori was sure that the little make-out session he had with Yuu on New Year’s day must have nerved Kouyou a tad bit – the older man didn’t seem to look at him the same way ever since. It wasn’t as if Kouyou was actually _threatened_ , but Takanori couldn’t blame Kouyou for keeping his guard just a tad up around the brunet. Takanori would be threatened by himself, too.  
   
Takanori was impossible to resist, after all, and Yuu might just one day wake up and realize he preferred brunets to blonds.  
   
… _Kidding._  
   
~  
   
Takanori was also innovative enough to find more ways to annoy his lover, which was _always_ a bonus. He’d walked through the doors of Akira’s office one slow afternoon, wheeling in a trolley on which an un-plugged copier machine lay.  
   
“Now that I’m an official employee, does this entitle me to take home all office products?” Takanori had quipped.  
   
Akira almost burst a vein.  
   
~  
   
Actually, several veins, in fact.  
   
And on one particular afternoon it finally proved too much.  
   
Unlike Yuu, who was almost _always_ busy with Kouyou’s never-ending schedule, Takanori’s position as an intern gave him much more free time than the raven-haired did, seeing as how Takanori was help that Akira hadn’t really needed in the first place. Takanori always managed to find an excuse one way or another to enter Akira’s office, often lounging his body across Akira’s sofa and beginning mindless chatter with the older man. Akira, thankfully, had managed to successfully stop Takanori from un-plugging electrical appliances from all over the place in a bid to steal them home – _“for god’s sake, Takanori, just use the credit card I gave you to get whatever you want”_ – but it appeared that old habits die hard. And in Takanori’s case, _way_ too hard. The brunet could never resist a good bargain.  
   
Takanori never failed to dress up impeccably for work, and had gained some attention amongst the office workers downstairs whenever he went down to the various departments to personally hand-deliver documents. Akira had no clue how Takanori managed to mingle effortlessly with staff that were often twice his age, but soon enough the little brunet had gained enough knowledge of the various floors’ happenings that it surprised _even_ Akira himself.  
   
“So, I was just in the pantry today,” Takanori started, as he lay sprawled all over Akira’s couch, gazing vacuously to the high ceiling. “And I heard from the ladies that Kazuo and Rin are totally fucking. Like, you will _not_ believe the kind of mess the HR department is in. It’s like a mass orgy in there.”  
   
“Amazing,” is what Akira responded with as he continued on with his work, still game enough to humour his lover’s thought process on the side. “I don’t know if all these information is appropriate for me, as their boss, to know, though.”  
   
“It’s always nice to know who’s fucking who. It’s good blackmail knowledge,” Takanori advised, making a small ‘tsk’ at how oblivious Akira was to such affairs. “Office politics and whatnot. The next time you see Rin, at least you know she’s into an insane amount of kink. Like, you know, pegging.”  
   
Akira placed his papers slowly down onto his desk, frowning deeply as Takanori’s words registered down in his mind. “Taka… That was information I could have lived the rest of my life very comfortably _not_ knowing. I see her at least twice a week in meetings.”  
   
“ _Oh,_ stop being so vanilla,” Takanori rolled his eyes up into his head. “Jenny found a strap-on dildo being kept in her desk drawer. Why aren’t people secretive with this kind of stuff? It’s like they get off from being found out like this.”  
   
“Taka, _please_ –”  
   
“And while we’re at it,” Takanori hurriedly added. “Did you hear that Yoko’s been going out with that new guy from IT department–”  
   
“Alright,” Akira stood up from his seat abruptly, growing increasingly uncomfortable with the discussion, both his hands planted down on his desk. Takanori shook slightly at Akira’s outburst, disconcerted by his reaction. He hadn’t seen that coming at all.  
   
“Babe, don’t you have other things to do?” Akira questioned, trying his hardest to quell his exasperation.  
   
“Not really, no,” Takanori replied, too brutally honest for his own good. “Emiko’s just replying emails. I think we’re good for today.”  
   
“Well, Takanori, I’m not. I have contracts to look through.”  
   
Akira’s snappy tone of voice immediately gave the brunet reason to pause. Takanori raised his head up from the couch, turning to face a rather disgruntled-looking Akira standing behind his desk. It didn’t look like he was ready to sit down and get back to his work _until_ Takanori finally made a move to leave his office. _Oops._ Had Takanori crossed a line without realising? He so rarely ever annoyed Akira to such an extent that even the possibility of having enraged Akira stirred up mixed feelings inside of Takanori.  
   
“You’re… pissed.” The brunet stated quietly, quickly recognizing the kind of silent anger before him.  
   
Akira looked on to him, waiting patiently as ever, sounding as calm as he could possibly be. But deep underneath that controlled exterior, Takanori was sure Akira had begun to grow even the slightest bit of irritation. Akira never truly expressed his anger much; he was used to containing it, only giving small clues here and there that he wasn’t in his best mood. Takanori was sensitive enough to pick up on all of the signs, and usually knew to back off if he knew he’d overstepped some boundaries.  
   
Today was different, however.  
   
“Takanori, I think you should go home.”  
   
It was a single statement, but it was enough to fill Takanori up with a vast amount of guilt. Perhaps he’d really gone overboard this time? Takanori wouldn’t ever know; Akira was usually nice enough to accommodate his (rather annoying, Takanori would _admit_ ) presence around his office. Maybe Takanori should have stopped divulging in his office gossip the moment Akira told him he was uncomfortable with it.  
   
“Um… I’m not getting fired, am I?” Takanori gazed up meekly to Akira’s piercing eyes, growing increasingly troubled with the way Akira was looking at him. He couldn’t have irked Akira so much to the extent of getting fired on his first week of work, could he?  
   
“No, honey,” Akira sighed, a hand moving up to rub tiresomely at his forehead. “But if you don’t have anything else to do for the day, maybe you should just head on home and put on an episode of a reality television show or two.”  
   
Takanori didn’t know how to react to his instructions. He only felt a thick ball rise up at the back of his throat, intense fear hitting him like a huge tidal wave. His eyes becoming overly bright, his chin trembled as he attempted to hold back the disappointment that was quickly overcoming him.  
   
Takanori wasn’t dumb. He could read between the lines. It was plain as day to him that Akira didn’t want him around here anymore, but had no other better way to put it across to him. Well, didn’t want him around for the time being, anyway. And it was such a foreign feeling – not being wanted by his older lover – that it completely frightened the brunet. It wasn’t a good feeling to have at all.  
   
“Am… Am I becoming too much to handle?” Takanori asked quietly, glassy eyes blinking continuously towards the older man. “Um… I’m sorry if I’m being a nuisance.”  
   
Akira seemed to notice the sudden change in confidence in the brunet – the absence of Takanori’s default perkiness was never a good sign – and he quickly shook his head, knowing his smaller lover was bound to get the wrong idea from him. As self-assured Takanori always claimed to be, Akira knew Takanori was far younger, and still far less matured than the man he was. Akira had no doubt Takanori’s feelings were still easily susceptible to be hurt, and that his mind was sure to take him to many places if Akira so much as uttered the wrong word. Sometimes he really was tired of having to be so careful with Takanori all the time. It was almost as if he owned a porcelain doll as his lover.  
   
“Taka, I’m not implying anything. It’s just… There’s nothing to do in this office. I’m sure you’re bored.”  
   
“I’m not bored here when I’m with you,” Takanori dug his fingers into his palms as he bit his quivering lip, confusion quickly clouding his glistening eyes. He didn’t understand why Akira couldn’t be honest with him and tell him if he was simply being a bother or not. Then again, Akira always spared him the truth in favour of protecting Takanori’s heart. Takanori wasn’t sure if he was especially grateful for that in this very moment or not. “Do you… Do you really want me to go?”  
   
Akira frowned. “Taka baby, you’re getting the wrong idea about this.”  
   
“Stop trying to make this about me, when it’s just you,” Takanori grinded his teeth back and forth, masking his hurt with anger instead. “You know what? I know I can get too much at times. Just tell me I’m too much, and I’ll go. You don’t have to come up with some bullshit excuse like me getting bored, because I’m not. Okay? I love you, and I like spending time with you, and I want to stay here. But if you need me to go, just tell me. It’s not like I’ll be offended, or anything. I just hate it when you’re trying so hard to not hurt my feelings like this. It makes me feel pathetic.”  
   
Akira’s eyes flew to a vexed shut, knowing that Takanori was making this a bigger deal than it really needed to be.  
   
“Taka, come here.”  
   
“What for?”  
   
“Just come here, sweetheart.”  
   
“No.”  
   
“Matsumoto Takanori, I’m not going to ask you a third time.”  
   
“Fine,” Takanori said, still fuming, removing himself from the sofa. Despite being upset, though, the brunet was fearful of making his older lover _too_ angry, and didn’t want to give Akira any reason to start disliking him as a person. Takanori was too used to being spoilt by Akira, and he didn’t like the thought of Akira pushing him away for no good reason at all.  
   
Takanori eventually came to a standstill right before Akira, with the brunet’s face still contorted in a terribly beautiful, yet heartbreaking expression. Takanori couldn’t bring himself to look into Akira’s eyes, afraid that what he would see would further upset him.  
   
“Takanori,” Akira began, his deep voice uncharacteristically crisp and sharp. The brunet wasn’t too used to being called by his full first name since Akira had always preferred shortening it to an affectionate ‘ _Taka_ ’, and to hear Akira being so formal with him frightened him. “I’ve been trying to put this nicely, sweetheart, but I _really_ have work I need to do, and I don’t think you should stay here. Not for today, anyway. Don’t you have other things you want to do back at home?”  
   
Takanori was _this_ close to bursting into full-on tears. Why was Akira being so unnecessarily mean? “So I was being annoying?”  
   
And that was the last straw.  
   
Akira looked at him, fed up. Takanori – all of a sudden – felt lost.  
   
“Look, I don’t have all day to coddle you, or play games with you. It’s almost as if you don’t seem to understand the fact that I’m the _vice-president_ of this company, and I can’t just dump my responsibilities aside just for a very needy lover that needs my constant attention, OK?”  
   
Akira’s words were akin to a dagger plunging straight through Takanori’s otherwise very vulnerable heart. What… What had gotten into the older man? Had Takanori – after all these time – finally found the one thing that would ignite Akira’s displeasure? And all these time Takanori always thought he always held the upper hand. Or had things started to change, already?  
   
“You’re being an asshole right now, Aki.” Takanori winced, sending him a dirty look anyway, unwilling to back down from the conversation and walk away with having his pride hurt so deeply. Akira had called him _needy_ , and claimed he needed to be coddled all day. And as much as that was true, well, Takanori wasn’t going to let Akira get away with it. Takanori wasn’t going to just let the love of his life attack his weak spots so easily like this without putting up a fight to it.  
   
“I’m not going to argue with you,” Akira affirmed, his lips in a tight line. “Go home, Takanori. I’ll meet you back there when I’m done with work.”  
   
“I’m not going home,” Takanori countered, almost threateningly. His eyes burning bright, he fully expected Akira to apologize for his words and beg Takanori to forgive him.  
   
But instead, all he got was a –  
   
“Suit yourself,” Akira said, and then he was turning away, keeping his back to Takanori, already prepared to end the conversation. Takanori barely had time to gawk at him, his heart breaking even further apart at the idea of Akira not caring whether Takanori would be returning home or not.  
   
“What? So you’re just going to let me go like this? You’re not even going to ask me to stay?” Takanori’s world was coming apart right before him. He couldn’t believe the sort of man Akira was acting right now before him. The brunet could hardly recognize the kind and gentle lover that always gave in to him without a thought.  
   
“Taka, you’re being unnecessarily dramatic right now.”  
   
“I’m not!” Takanori yelled, his lips quivering, his hands quickly bunching up into fists. Angry tears spilled down his cheeks as he raised his fists to Akira’s back, throwing weak punches at the older man into oblivion. “You’re being the insensitive bastard in this situation right now! You know what, I’ll just leave! I’m not going home! And no amount of apologies is going to win me back! You’ll see!”  
   
At some point Akira must have thought he’d had enough of it, for he was turning around in a second, pulling Takanori in and smothering him with a kiss, sending the brunet into shock. For a moment Takanori did nothing, only looking on as Akira bit down onto his lower lip and slipped his tongue inside, kissing the shorter lover hard, and yet so sweetly. Takanori couldn’t help but eventually produce a quiet moan, fluttering his eyes close, not even resisting as Akira tugged his body close and began rubbing gentle circles on his hips. He always gave in too easily when it came to the older man.  
   
Sweet little noises were muffled in the kiss, and when they separated, Takanori couldn’t help but gasp for air, his heart thrashing wildly in his chest. He was still so in love with the vice-president, and the both of them knew it. Takanori had only been acting out of hurt, ‘twas all. He just needed to know Akira still loved him, despite their differences.  
   
“I don’t understand,” Takanori whispered, shimmering eyes gazing up into Akira’s ones. Akira didn’t respond, merely shushing the brunet, and he didn’t hesitate pulling him in for another kiss, clearly having enjoyed the previous one as much as the brunet did. With Takanori’s cheeks flushing hot, the older man soon left the younger man’s lips, and gave a couple of hard kisses to Takanori’s neck. Takanori quickly lost his balance and soon found himself pressed up against Akira’s hard desk, his hands desperately clenching hard onto the edge of the table to prevent himself from falling over. Akira was clearly getting too carried away with him, but Takanori wasn’t about to complain about it – not when when he was finally getting the kind of attention he wanted from the vice-president.  
   
“Aki, _fuck_ …” Takanori uttered in a strangled murmur, his eyes quickly falling shut.  
   
Akira’s firm hands wouldn’t stop sliding up and down his thighs as he kissed the brunet’s neck, making Takanori tremble with want. He’d always been especially sensitive around his neck regions, and Akira had _always_ taken advantage of it. His muffled, uncontrolled moans soon gave rise to a certain hardness in his older lover’s pants, and the knowledge that he’d already made Akira so hard so easily excited Takanori equally. Akira still wanted him. Akira still _loved_ him. Akira wasn’t just going to throw him away so easily like un-needed trash.  
   
“Quit being so difficult, Taka,” Akira sighed under his breath, manhandling Takanori easily in his grasp. Takanori just moaned in reply, not protesting the sudden aggressiveness at all.  
   
It was to no one’s surprise that Takanori found himself bent over the office desk a couple of minutes later, his tight leather pants pulled down to his knees, Akira’s palms maintaining a firm grip on the brunet’s ass. Akira was still keeping his silence, his subsiding anger showing only through his rough and impatient touches, but Takanori only got more turned on by the older man’s increased need for control, and the younger man was more than happy to relinquish all power to his older lover.  
   
Takanori’s fingers dug deep into the surface of the desk, shaking and murmuring something unintelligible as Akira slid himself slowly into the brunet, having utilized the lube and condom he’d always kept aside in his office for emergencies like this. Stifling a low groan, Akira bit on his lower lip as his hands on Takanori’s ass helped kept him steady, the tightening sensations around his cock already making it too hard for him to maintain control.  
   
“Mmm _… Daddy_ ,” Takanori huffed out a breath, a whine bubbling up in the back of his throat, knowing he was submitting entirely to the older man with such a nickname. It wasn’t long before Akira was plunged fully inside him, and the sheer pleasure that came along with the friction was making Takanori’s legs shudder with _need_ , already. Akira almost lost composure at the dirty name-calling Takanori was doing, even tilting his own hips up as if to prove that he was _deserving_ of being labelled as such.  
   
And then Takanori was hissing, his head lying flat on the desk, his mouth parted in sweet, hot, familiar moans.  
   
“ _Daddyyyy,_ your cock feels so big inside of me… _Fuck_ … Teach me my lesson, Daddy…!”  
   
He focused on grinding down and then raising his hips, incredibly slow, urging for Akira to do more to him. Akira outright moaned at the movement against his cock, his eyes gazing down to the lewd sight before him with a sort of dizzy arousal. Takanori was completely under his will, his two pale-white ass cheeks spread out and ready to be taken and fucked hard by Akira’s cock.  
   
And _fuck,_ there was something so dangerous and _exotic_ about fucking within the confines of Akira’s office that always got him going so fucking bad.    
   
Akira let Takanori fuck himself on his cock for a couple steady beats rather impatiently before the older man decided to thrust his hips back up against Takanori’s ass, catching the brunet ultimately by surprise, making him cry out and stutter. Takanori scratched _hard_ at his office desk, cries caught in his throat as Akira slammed feverishly into him from behind, non-stop and unforgiving just the way Takanori liked it, until his eyes are lidded, watering with tears that gather and threaten to fall.  
   
“You’ve always been so disobedient, Taka,” Akira grunted, his legs keeping an amazingly steady grip as he gave continuous thrusts into the younger man from behind. “Not listening to what your daddy tells you to do. You never know when to stop, do you? But what you really need is a good and rough fucking to put you in place. That’s all you want, isn’t it? Being fucked good by me all day long.”  
   
“I…I’m… _Nnn_ … That’s right…! _Daddy_ …” Takanori couldn’t even find the strength to reply coherently. He kept moaning out high, exasperated noises, and Akira could barely handle it. The older man instead buried himself deeper with harder thrusts, fucking into the hot body below him with an intense sort of fervor. Hazy, lustful expressions crossed Takanori’s face as he begged for Akira to slow down – without ever really meaning it – until he felt that sharp, aching pleasure shoot up right through him with one particular thrust.  
   
“ _Nnngh…_ Right there,” Takanori sobbed out, the tears clinging to his lashes falling thickly down his face. “Please… _Daddy_ … I’m gonna cum… Hit it again!”  
   
Akira angled his hips and even though he could feel himself growing frantic, he slowed down long enough to find that spot again. He rammed against it again and again and Takanori cried out the same way, growing louder and louder with each cry until he was damn sure he was hitting his maximum point.  
   
“Fuck, _baby_ ,” Akira moaned out, the slick, tight sensation of pumping in and out of Takanori making him close to his limit as well. He then decided to spontaneously to give a rough slap to Takanori’s right ass cheek, a movement that sent a twitch straight to Takanori’s cock.  
   
“You’re going to listen to me from now on, aren’t you? You’re going to, or you’ll get fucked hard like this. _Mmm_ … So fucking tight this ass is. _Fuck_.”  
   
Gasps coming louder and whines growing more desperate, Akira leaned forward until their hips were pressed impossibly close together, eyes falling to a close as he feels himself approaching his own climax. Takanori eventually came first with a shout that barely resembled Akira’s name, throwing his head back in an orgasmic haze, his cheeks flushed hot. Akira came inside him a second later, burying himself inside the velvety tight heat a final time before he pulled out with a lewd sound, cum messily dripping off the back of Takanori’s thighs.  
   
~  
   
Akira spooned Takanori against his sofa later, gently taking Takanori into his arms, a hand holding the brunet’s head closely to his chest. Takanori’s tear-stained face was a mess, but he looked far less heartbroken than before now that he’d gotten some well-deserved make-up sex, and Akira knew he had to make up for the cruel words he’d accidentally let slip earlier in a rare fit of anger.  
   
“You know I love you. So much. You know that, right?” Akira began in a whisper, bending his lips over, hovering his lips just above Takanori’s ear.  
   
Takanori nodded numbly, his own voice coming out raspy from his tight throat, his lashes decorated with tears “I love you so much, too.”  
   
“I’m not angry at you, babe,” Akira’s hand caressed past Takanori’s hair, taking such care to speak so softly with the brunet that his voice came out almost like a lullaby. “You know I never can be mad at you.”  
   
“But you–” And here came the sudden ugly crying noise that Takanori was ashamed of making. “–you said you wanted me to go away. I’m sorry if I stay too long in your office all day talking to you. I just like being here when you work…”  
   
“I know that, sweetheart,” Akira’s heart wrenched quietly at Takanori’s words. The brunet was way too precious to be looking so heartbroken like this. “I know you like being near me when I work. I love being able to see you around everyday like this, too. But Taka… You know that I’m the vice-president of this company, and you know I have responsibilities I have to uphold. You don’t see Yuu hanging around Kouyou’s office all day talking to him, do you?”  
   
Takanori rubbed his tear-filled eyes against Akira’s chest, not caring if he was leaving wet smudges. “No, I don’t.”  
   
“Taka, you know I would spend all day with you if I could. And I really do try to do that, but sometimes work really gets in the way, and you understand that, right?”  
   
Takanori chewed against his lip, then raised his head up apprehensively to face his lover. “I know that… I’m not unreasonable.”  
   
“Then do me a favour and understand this isn’t personal,” Akira said soothingly, lowering his fingers to Takanori’s cheeks to rub the tears right off. “I’m going to have to earn my keep so that I can take care of you, Taka. And the board of investors’ not paying me to just sit around all day talking to my lover about who’s fucking who in the HR department.”  
   
Takanori managed a small grin at the mention. “Seriously, though, they’re a bunch of whores.”  
   
“I know, baby, I know,” Akira smiled down to the brunet. “So we’ve gotten this out of the way, right? You understand where I’m coming from?”  
   
Takanori nodded up with reluctance to the vice-president. “I understand. I was just scared you’d gotten tired of me…”  
   
“Oh, sweetie,” Akira sighed. “I’ll _never_ get tired of you. It’s just, I always want to give you my 100 per cent. And I can’t do that if I have work I know I need to finish.”  
   
Takanori nodded again, a sweet smile curling up on his face. “I know. I love you.”  
   
“I love you, too,” Akira said, kissing the brunet softly on the forehead.  
   
And then Takanori was drifting off into sleep, brought about by his post-orgasm bliss. It took Akira awhile before he was willing to pull away from Takanori’s embrace and return to his office desk, shaking his head with a small smile tainting his face once he saw the mess they’d made on the table.  
   
Akira also knew now that he’d found a new solution to maintaining some peace and quiet whilst still keeping Takanori around here – even if it _definitely_ involved leaving a few stains here and there right onto his office desk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG this chapter was holy shit levels of long. XD it's making my OCD act up because it's longer than the average chapter... but I guess I'll ignore it for the Reituki T_T
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the Reituki!!!! Some of you probably guessed this was coming... Come on. You KNOW Takanori was going to get in on some of this. He's not going to be left out when his BFF has wormed his way into Kouyou and Akira's corporation. XD Akira is just a liiiiittle meaner than usual, but he's still our good ol' patient and understanding Daddy we all need in our lives ♡ some Reituki smut because I think it's finally time for some good ol' Daddy kink and bent over the office desk smut. 
> 
> btw don't say I didn't warn you-- (just going to drop this bomb casually)...a shit storm is coming up.
> 
> and ~~everyone's~~ favourite character is coming back :D
> 
> Y A Y. comments are loved as usual ♡


	56. the Office VI

Two months in, and Kouyou has his first full-on meltdown.  
   
It was to be expected, really. It was applaudable enough that Kouyou had managed to keep his usually more-than-foul mood at work under control for so long around his raven beau, seeing as how he was much less _compassionate_ when Chiaki was around; and somehow Yuu had always been mentally preparing himself for an outburst from his older lover, knowing something like _this_ would eventually happen one way or another. He knew the kind of stress Kouyou was under on a daily basis, and he could never blame Kouyou for it. Kouyou was gravely serious when it came to work matters, and Yuu knew he couldn’t mess anything up in fear of throwing the CEO off-track from his work.  
   
Yuu just didn’t think it would hurt this much, _but it did_. To be on the receiving end of Kouyou’s less-than-affectionate manner of behavior, that was. Yuu was used to watching Kouyou give a good thrashing or two to his subordinates – not to his lover. But Yuu understood that him interning at Kouyou’s workplace now meant that he was to be seen separately for the secretary that he was, not the delicate raven-haired princess that curled up against Kouyou’s chest every night. If Yuu wanted to be taken seriously as an employee – which Kouyou was trying the hardest to do as such – Yuu would have to accept all the responsibilities that came along with it, _including_ the occasional scoldings every now and then.  
   
Yuu just hadn’t ever been scolded before by Kouyou. And it kind of hurt. _Kind of_ was an understatement. It was quite funny, the feeling; Yuu almost felt like he was transported back in time, back to when Kouyou had Christine by his side in the office, and was refusing to look at Yuu in the eye and acknowledge Yuu’s existence. Yuu had felt like he was nothing, then.  
   
Yuu felt almost the same, now.  
   
It’d all started when Kouyou requested for Yuu to hand him back an important folder containing a client’s proposal that was to be signed off the day after. It had been hand-delivered to Akira earlier for his approval, and after it had gone through the vice-president’s eyes, Takanori had dropped it off amidst the clutter on Yuu’s desk, a look of pity in his eye when he saw how busy his raven-haired best friend was. Yuu and Kouyou had been having a particularly hectic week, with many deadlines to meet, and Yuu’s desk had already been in a complete disarray since the week before.  
   
There were several piles of thick folders stacked up high on Yuu’s desk, with many of them flipped open for Yuu to retrieve the necessary documents for Kouyou. It was practically a post-it notes galore – Yuu had reminders stuck on every inch and corner of his desk, making notes each time someone new came up to the CEO’s floor to drop off something for Kouyou’s attention. Yuu hardly had any time to breathe. They’d been working through lunchtime for a handful of days now, and today hadn’t been an exception either. The only quality time the couple ever got was when they finished their overtime work together and left the office, and even then, Kouyou made sure they had a good meal outside for dinner before returning home. By the time they’d finished taking their showers, the two of them would pass out on Kouyou’s king-sized bed.  
   
Yuu didn’t mind the workload, really. Yuu could handle anything. He didn’t even mind the fact that Kouyou and him hadn’t made love in two weeks, too exhausted to do anything else but sleep once they’d returned home. Yuu didn’t let the fact that their sex life was leaving much to be desired for _after_ Yuu had taken up the position as Kouyou’s secretary affect him, since the lack of time coupled with the heavy workload on them meant that they gradually had less and less opportunities to be intimate with each other. This was what Yuu had signed up for, and he’d expected it from the start.  
   
He just hadn’t expected Kouyou to be capable of such harshness on him. Whilst Yuu was preoccupied with preparing notes for an upcoming meeting, Kouyou had rang Yuu up and requested to be passed that one specific folder he needed to take a look at for tomorrow’s sign-off with the client. Yuu knew it’d been left off at his desk by Takanori just hours before; Yuu knew exactly the spot it’d been left in. He’d extended out a hand to reach for the file, his eyes still engrossed in penning down his notes, his empty hand grasping at thin air for a file that was _supposed_ to be there.  
   
But wasn’t.  
   
The realization didn’t hit him at first. Yuu thought he must have mixed it up with some other file on his desk – his work space had become _that_ disorganized and chaotic. Yuu got up from his seat, rummaged through everything possible that was lay out on his table, the possibility of the file going missing still not crossing his head. Until it took him five minutes, ten minutes, fifteen minutes, twenty – and Yuu felt his heart slowly begin to plummet when he _still_ couldn’t find the requested file in hand.  
   
Two months into this job, and Yuu hadn’t fucked up once. Sure, he’d made the occasional mistakes, and he was pretty new to a couple of routines, but Kouyou, or more senior staff, would always gently guide him into it, and Yuu had never fucked up _once_. He hadn’t ever made Kouyou miss a meeting, he hadn’t ever forgotten to take down the right notes, he hadn’t ever lost _anything_.  
   
But now Yuu had a lost a _very_ important proposal that was to be discussed upon in a meeting on the day after, and Yuu had never felt fear harder than this. The raven thought he might have even been bordering the verge of a panic attack. This couldn’t be happening to him; he couldn’t have overlooked something in the midst of his busyness, and fucking _lost_ something as important as this. Kouyou was still waiting in his office for the folder, and there was no way Yuu would get out of this unscathed once Kouyou learnt of the news. Yuu had made an absurd mistake. A mistake he didn’t even understand. Yuu never made ludicrous errors like these; and to suddenly be making one felt like a joke.  
   
The pressure on Yuu from the start had always been too huge. Yuu never wanted to be a disappointment to his lover, a fuck-up that would cost Kouyou crucial projects, or a burden on Kouyou that would cause the blond to regret taking Yuu under his wing as his secretary. Yuu had promised Kouyou he was up to the job, and if he couldn’t – _if god forbid he couldn’t deliver; couldn’t meet up to Kouyou’s rigorous expectations_ – then what was the whole point of Yuu being here to help Kouyou with his work? Yuu was already feeling pressured enough to try his hardest at his job, knowing that Kouyou didn’t deserve otherwise; knowing that Yuu couldn’t look at Kouyou in the face if he failed him in his work.  
   
And now… _this_. Yuu must have berated himself mentally for a full ten minutes, his heart tightening in his chest, his breaths coming out uneven as he ransacked his desk over and over again, struggling to find that one specific folder that Kouyou wanted. He couldn’t have lost it. He _couldn’t_ have. He’d called Takanori, too, checking with him as to the whereabouts of the folder, but to no avail. Takanori had left it in the spot Yuu had seen him leave this afternoon, and there was no way the folder could be found anywhere else. Yuu would have broken down in tears of distress had he not forced himself to keep it together, checking every inch and crook of the office again and again and _three goddamn times in a row_. Someone must have left it somewhere. It _had_ to be here. He wouldn’t be able to answer to Kouyou otherwise.  
   
Kouyou came out of his office shortly after that, when the wait got too long.  
   
Yuu wasn’t sure why he’d assumed Kouyou would brush the matter off and tell Yuu it was fine, that it was okay, that they could always get the client to courier over new documents and they’d sign them all over again – or maybe, deep down inside, he always thought Kouyou would forgive him for anything and _everything_ – but Kouyou hadn’t been having a particularly stress-free week, and Yuu felt the exact same. Still, Yuu’s nervously beating heart hadn’t been prepared _enough_ for the irritation that flooded Kouyou’s eyes when he learnt of what had happened, much less the heated argument Yuu hadn’t anticipated would follow after it.  
   
“What do you mean, _you can’t find it_?”  
   
“It’s just–” It was taking _all_ of Yuu to keep his composure and bury the sadness and the fear and the anxiety altogether down inside of him, knowing he had no one else to blame but himself for this crucial mistake. “–Kou, I’m so sorry, it was just here on my desk, I swear, I have no idea why it’s gone–”  
   
“Yuu, do you even _realize_ how fucking important this proposal is? Or how big this client is?”  
   
Perhaps Yuu had grown thick-skinned enough to subdue the disappointed tears away the moment they spring up in his eyes, and perhaps years of being a sugar baby had taught Yuu to conceal his emotions and will the hurt away in exchange for total defiance and stubbornness.  
   
“ _Of course_ I know how important this is, we’ve been in and out of discussions for this particular proposal–”  
   
“Then _kindly_ explain how you’re not taking any of this seriously enough to take care of the folders I need.”  
   
And Kouyou’s so harsh, fuck _,_ so fucking harsh when he needs to be. It felt even unnecessary at times, for the man to be speaking in a condescending tone such as this; for the man to show complete disgust and repulsion at the way people made mistakes, the way people were _human_. The way Kouyou’s eyes were currently glazing over Yuu’s face with the kind of aggravation that Yuu recognized as one that said he could no longer stand the raven in his sight – and it was enough to tear every bit of Yuu’s fragile confidence right apart.  
   
It hurt, all the more, for Kouyou to assume that Yuu wasn’t taking any of his job seriously enough to have _not_ lost this important document for Kouyou. It hurt, all the more, because Yuu had been working his ass off for the blond for two months now, adjusting himself to match Kouyou’s perfectionistic streak, placing enough pressure on himself to ensure he would _never_ make a single mistake for fear of inconveniencing Kouyou.  
   
Sure, it was a good trait for Kouyou to have, especially CEOs, to be demanding in their work, and to see to it that their subordinates adhered to his every expectation. And _sure_ , such dictative behaviour could even be seen as a turn-on sometimes – but only when it was not being specifically directed to _Yuu_. Hurt beyond belief by Kouyou’s cutting words and assumptions, Yuu couldn’t help but feel his heart growing scornful, betrayed by how lowly Kouyou thought of him to be.  
   
“ _I’m_ not taking this seriously?” Yuu’s tone of voice was raised, much higher than it usually was, and Yuu had never been the kind to let his anger overwhelm him, having always preferred to take his anger in silence, and stalk off the fight without a word. But Yuu wasn’t going to take this beating down from his lover – his future _husband_ , too – no; Yuu wasn’t going to simply stand here and apologize for one careless mistake he made that he hadn’t even seen coming. If Kouyou truly saw him as someone he cared about, he would understand that Yuu hadn’t done any of this on purpose.  
   
Kouyou was supposed to know him inside out.  
   
“You really think that, Kouyou? You think I haven’t been putting any effort into this job for you? Because I’ve been working through every lunchtime with you, staying back in this office till the wee hours of the night for you, and I’ve never said a single word nor complaint about any of this because it’s my job, it’s my responsibility, and it’s what I promised you I’d do. And I’ve been trying so hard _,_ to be the kind of secretary Chiaki was for you, just so you wouldn’t have to worry so much on your end – and all I get is you asking me if I’m fucking serious about my work for you.”  
   
Kouyou’s eyes flared up in shock, clearly having not anticipated Yuu to challenge him further like this. And it gave Yuu just a tad bit of satisfaction to see that look on his face. Just a little bit. Because otherwise, Yuu always tries his best to be subservient to his lover, to adhere to most things he says. And Yuu can’t take being insulted like this, he really can’t. Kouyou might be his boss here, he might be the CEO of the entire fucking company for all Yuu cared, but that didn’t mean Kouyou could make such unkind assumptions about him and tell him off like Yuu had just goddamn _murdered_ his entire family.  
   
“Clearly not serious enough, then,” Kouyou barked back, his eyes staring at Yuu, unwilling to lower the intensity of his gaze. “But I guess I shouldn’t have expected much from you.” And Kouyou said it all so nonchalantly, too, without a _care_ in the world; and Yuu wasn’t quite sure what he was hearing with his own ears anymore.  
   
_What the fuck?_ Was Kouyou pulling out every possible stop from a book that was probably aptly titled _How to successfully dump your fiancé in 60 seconds_? Could Kouyou not see past his blind anger and pride that these were _not_ appropriate things to say to someone who had been pouring so much energy into making things work just for his sake?  
   
“I’m sorry, come again?” Yuu didn’t even feel the very wrenching of his gut anymore. It was there, Yuu could tell; his heart was most likely the more broken one out of the two in this office right now. But Yuu couldn’t even concentrate on that emotional heartbreak, not when he quickly felt himself overcome with rage, unable to believe how much of a dick his otherwise usually so gentle fiancé was acting. “You shouldn’t have expected much from _me_? What does that even mean, Kouyou?! If you have something to say, Kouyou, just fucking spit it out!”  
   
And Kouyou must be having an off day, or _something_ ; otherwise he was going out of his complete mind, his ego taking over every rational thought in his head.  
   
“You’re too young,” Kouyou hissed, turning his head away, almost as if their very conversation was already exhausting his elitist mind and wasting every second of his precious time. “You shouldn’t have been allowed here in the first place. You don’t belong here. I knew something like this was going to happen.”  
   
“Something like _what_?” Yuu crouched forward, daring him to repeat once more the words that had torn his heart into a thousand fragments, words that Yuu had never thought could possibly leave Kouyou’s mouth. “Something like me fucking up my job and in turn, ruining it for you, too?”  
   
“You don’t even understand how important all of _this_ is,” Kouyou snapped, raising his arms up into air, brandishing them wildly around his office, his eyes sparkling with ferocity towards the raven. “You think everything just comes easily to me in the corporate world. Well, newsflash: we can’t afford to make frivolous mistakes like losing a proposal that’s to be signed off the very next day. I don’t know what you did back in college, and how your professors lectured you for not handing in assignments, but this is the real world, Yuu.  
   
If you think I’m being particularly biased to you just because of who you are to me, I’m not. And if I expect to see something on my desk and it isn’t, I’m going to get mad. Because I need to get things done. And you’re not helping me. _This_ shit isn’t helping me. So don’t get upset when I get upset when the work I expect isn’t being getting done.”  
   
Yuu’s cheeks flushed red at his stern words, his blood boiling at how fucking patronizing Kouyou was being. “It’s just a _fucking_ folder, Kouyou! Do you scream at everyone like this when they fail to deliver shit to you? Do you know how unreasonable you’re acting right now?!”  
   
Kouyou’s mouth gaped open at the allegation, his eyes unblinking, a piercing look in them. “It’s just a _fucking folder_? Care to repeat that again, Yuu? You think this isn’t going to cost us billions of dollars if we fail to clinch this client? It’s all a game to you, isn’t it? I should have fucking known.”  
   
“You’re being a big baby over this,” Yuu asserted, hands closing into fists. “You know I didn’t even do this on purpose. You don’t have to bring in how young I am, or how uncapable I am, basing me off _one_ mistake I make. That’s not how you judge people. And that’s not how a CEO should manage his company.  
   
And you know what? I always thought you were better than this, Kouyou.”  
   
Kouyou’s eyes immediately narrowed into slits at the harsh criticism, his voice leaving his lips with much disdain, sounding the most hostile and spiteful Yuu had heard him been in _years_.  
   
“Funny thing, Yuu,” the CEO snidely remarked. “Because I always thought you were better than this, too.”  
   
And that was when Yuu knew that was it.  
   
That was it. It was a done deal. Yuu didn’t see any point in furthering this conversation; it was over. They were over. And Yuu couldn’t see how they were going to move past this, because if Kouyou was going to act so petty over Yuu losing a damn folder, then he could very well marry his goddamn self and be petty to his _goddamn vicious self_. And Yuu’s proud, he is, for having withstood his ground through this whole altercation, not having erupted into tears all these while. Because for the first time in a long time, Yuu didn’t need Kouyou’s petty as hell arms around him to make him feel OK. And maybe every relationship has to withstand through a real test before taking the leap of marriage, and this was theirs. A petty as hell one at that, but petty enough for Yuu to realize that they weren’t ready to jump into marriage and move past even bigger issues together.  
   
Kouyou evidently had unrealistic expectations of Yuu; evidently hadn’t seen how much Yuu had toiled over work just for him; evidently didn’t see a need to take Yuu’s feelings into account over all of these. And if Kouyou wanted to marry someone that was perfect enough not to commit any mistake in their entire fucking _life_ , Kouyou could go ahead and marry someone else like that.  
   
Preferably a high-functioning robot.  
   
Or an inflated blow-up doll.  
   
This scumbag didn’t deserve anything more.  
   
“I’ll search the office again. I’ll find it for you before the end of the day,” Yuu spoke through clenched teeth, not intending to play nice anymore. He had no idea how he was going to go home with Kouyou tonight and pretend nothing had changed between them – because something had definitely changed midst this argument – but Yuu would leave that issue later for him to be worried about. He couldn’t even _stand_ the very thought that Kouyou’s ring was on his finger now, and he wanted so desperately to take it off the moment Kouyou took his eyes off him.  
   
He couldn’t even believe he agreed to marry this asshole. Or spend the rest of his life with him, for that matter. Kouyou was kicking up such a huge fuss over a matter Yuu had no complete control over, and blaming it entirely on the raven-haired. And it was Yuu’s fault, _yes,_ but was it so fucking hard for Kouyou to see that Yuu was upset enough as it was and fucking lend some moral support and tell Yuu they’d find a way to fix things and that Yuu didn’t need to stress too much over this?  
   
Apparently not.  
   
“I’m not the one being unreasonable about this,” Kouyou retorted, sensing plenty of begrudgingness on Yuu’s end. “You know the kind of stress I’m under, Yuu. I can’t afford to jeopardize the company like this.”  
   
“It’s just a _fucking_ file,” Yuu scowled in return, hating how Kouyou was so obviously showing that he was prioritizing his career way above Yuu’s feelings amongst all of these. “Don’t worry, _I’m_ not going to fucking jeopardize your company.”  
   
“I didn’t say that,” Kouyou retaliated defensively.  
   
“You didn’t have to say it,” Yuu snapped his head to him, his eyes locking bitterly with his lover’s.  
   
_Funny how things change_.  
   
The office phone on Yuu’s desk began ringing a second after, and for a moment Yuu contemplated not answering it, too riled up to answer any professional calls for the time being. Seeing as how Kouyou was standing only a short position away from the phone, he moved his hand to pick it up instead, taking the opportunity to avert Yuu’s resentful gaze.  
   
“Takashima speaking… _Oh_ , it’s you, Akira,” Kouyou breathed out, lowering his voice to a more casual tone, speaking in quiet murmurs, letting his guard down now that he knew he was speaking to his best friend. Yuu took this time to scrutinize the older man carefully, his heart falling all the way down to the depths of his chest now that he had time to digest the after-effects of the argument they’d just been having. Yuu had been expecting this melt-down from Kouyou, he really did. Kouyou had always been so overbearing over his professional affairs, and his intolerance for matters he prioritized highly in his life had always showed. Perhaps that was why Kouyou was so fierce to anyone who dared to hurt Yuu; perhaps that was why Kouyou made a great lover, and not necessarily always a great boss.  
   
And Yuu understood that Kouyou was just doing his job. And perhaps it _did_ pain Kouyou to be reprimanding Yuu like this, to be blowing up in his face over something that he knew Yuu didn’t mean to do. But there was still a small part of Yuu that could hardly believe what had happened; there was still a part of Yuu that had always assumed Kouyou would never fault Yuu for anything. Sure, Kouyou had been vicious to Yuu _before_ , but that was before they patched things back up and promised each other not to let anything get in the way of their relationship again.  
   
And it broke Yuu, almost, to have his dreams dashed like this, to have his ideals of a perfect Kouyou shatter violently into pieces. Kouyou had always been everything Yuu wanted and _more_ – and now he was just a cold, unfeeling bastard that Yuu had always thought he wouldn’t have to face. That was it – Yuu had always thought he was the special one in Kouyou’s life. That Kouyou could be mean to everyone else, but never to Yuu. Yuu _wanted_ to be the exception in Kouyou’s life. And Yuu had thought he was, too, until _this_ happened.  
   
Now Yuu just didn’t know anymore.  
   
“Mm, is that so,” Kouyou’s words were quietly uttered, and Yuu couldn’t make out much from his conversation with Akira, only that Kouyou had begun glancing back up to meet Yuu’s defiant eyes every now and then. Yuu hated how those eyes that always seemed so full of love for Yuu had begun looking so aloof and detached from the raven. “I see. I’ll let Yuu know. Yes, you can send Takanori up in a bit. Thanks.”  
   
When the conversation came to an end, the blond returned the phone back into its holder rather hesitantly, as if reluctant to convey the news. Yuu watched Kouyou for a good few seconds, watching the older man’s head turn to the side, avoiding Yuu’s stare, the blond’s hands automatically raking up through his hair, a tell-tale sign that Kouyou had found himself in a severely uncomfortable position.  
   
He had to physically gather the strength to speak.  
   
“Akira took the file.”  
   
Oh.  
   
So _now_ Kouyou knew he’d fucked up. That explained the excruciatingly painful silence.  
   
“I didn’t see him take it,” Yuu managed to say, though he was already unwilling to continue speaking any more with his supposed fiancé. Yuu fucking knew he didn’t lose it. It couldn’t have disappeared without a goddamn cause.  
   
“He said he came up when you weren’t around. Perhaps you’d gone to another department then.” It was pretty amusing, actually, to see Kouyou fumble with the ends of the cuffs of his shirt’s sleeves like this, knowing he had been in the wrong to have blown his top off at Yuu in the first place. “Akira has just ended his meeting, so Takanori finally had the chance to ask him about the file – said you were missing it and were looking desperately for it. Akira said he had needed to check on a couple of details, so on his way to his meeting he came up here and took it. He said that he would get Takanori to return it here in the next half an hour.”  
   
Yuu would have let slip a laugh then and there if he could at the absurdity of the turn of events.  
   
“Great, then,” The corners of Yuu’s lips quirked up into a sweet, pleasant smile, his eyes gazing straight into the older man’s eyes. Kouyou had found plenty of opportunities to be snarky to Yuu earlier – and Yuu wanted to repay him exactly right back. “You got what you wanted. Your file’s intact. Your company’s _saved_. I didn’t magically fuck everything all up because I hadn’t been _serious_ enough.”  
   
The sarcasm heavily dripping off the raven’s words were enough to draw out the guilt within Kouyou’s eyes.  
   
“I… might have gone overboard.”  
   
Yuu’s smile tightened. “ _Might_?”  
   
You broke my fucking heart.  
   
Kouyou lowered his gaze, a hand moving to caress up the sides of his jaw in exasperation. “Yuu, you know I did what I have to do.”  
   
“You sure did,” Yuu laughed it off. “And you know what? I understand that perfectly. Just being a boss and all, _right_? I now know why Chiaki’s so frightened of you.”  
   
“You’re upset, and I understand that,” Kouyou responded, in a soft voice. “Yuu, I’m sorry we fought about this. But this is just what happens at work. And I’m not going to let this argument affect us. The _us_ we have at home. The _us_ we have when we go on dinner dates, the _us_ we have when we go to sleep together every night. The _us_ that makes me so happy all the time. We still have our marriage to look forward to. I don’t want this to cross over into our personal lives, Yuu, you know that.”  
   
And all of this is so fucking easy for Kouyou to say, but it isn’t even a single ounce easy for Yuu’s heart to deal with at all.  
   
Yuu felt the searing anger inside of him slowly fade away, replaced instead by the heartache from before that was quickly creeping into him.  
   
If it was so easy for Kouyou to discard Yuu without a second thought, especially when it came to placing his career on a higher pedestal instead of his _very own lifelong partner_ , Yuu didn’t want to have a part to play in Kouyou’s life at all.  
   
“You know what, Kouyou?” Yuu began cheerfully. “You’re right.”  
   
There was a twinge of hope in Kouyou’s voice. “That we’re not going to let this affect us at all?”  
   
“That I shouldn’t have signed up for this job,” Yuu clarified. “You were right. And I should have listened. And I didn’t. But I know now that a man at his workplace isn’t the same man that takes care of me lovingly back at home. That he’s completely different; that he’s a heartless bastard who can’t see humans for who they are, that he sets absurd demands just to suit his own twisted, fucked up dog-eat-dog world agenda.  
   
That anyone here isn’t allowed to fuck up anything within your sight, because as long as it involves you, it means they’re not taking _anything_ in their fucking life seriously, it means they’re as good as garbage to you. Because that’s how you rule as CEO, don’t you? You make sure to prioritize only the things – and people – useful to you. You’d hurt the ones you love just to keep that massive pride of yours. If you can’t rule here as a king, you rather not rule at all. And that’s not the kind of man I thought I was going to marry. I thought you had a heart bigger than anyone I knew. And now I’m not so sure.”  
   
Kouyou’s face was unmoving for a second.  
   
Yuu could barely read his thoughts.  
   
“Ah. I see… You don’t want me anymore,” he softly articulated in the next second, his voice cracking, and with that – _with that_ , Yuu suddenly heard everything.  
   
The quiet sounds of a solid heart rupturing; like a thousand bloody cuts from an unsharpened knife thrusting in slowly, but deeply. And Kouyou looked resigned enough not to put up a fight; he knew the only mistake made around here had been by him.  
   
“I didn’t say that,” Yuu protested.  
   
Kouyou’s voice came out crisp. “You didn’t have to.”  
   
Yuu’s stomach tied up into a knot.  
   
“You’re right, I shouldn’t have judged you based on that one mistake,” Kouyou kept his gaze on the ground, his voice losing all his previous willpower. “But doesn’t that mean you shouldn’t make rash decisions because of this mistake of mine, too?”  
   
“This is _hardly_ a mistake,” Yuu looked to him incredulously. “This is who you are, Kouyou.”  
   
Kouyou inhaled sharply at his words, feeling as if someone just ripped all air from his lungs. “Ah. So that’s… that’s what you think. Of me. Now.”  
   
“Am I wrong?” Yuu questioned, and he hated it, hated how Kouyou was acting so defensive, as if he hadn’t just lashed out at the raven, and basically told him Kouyou had never thought much of his capabilities in the first place. “Kouyou, don’t you _fucking_ dare to act like you’re the victim in this right now, when you and I know perfectly who started the fight.”  
   
And Kouyou flitted his wounded eyes up to Yuu at that, confused by the unwarranted insult.  
   
“I shouldn’t have let you work here.”  
   
“That wasn’t the fucking problem, and you know it.”  
   
“No,” Kouyou let out a pained laugh. “The problem is that I’m not the man you want me to be at work, and you don’t like that. You don’t like that I’m not your Prince Charming around these parts. That I have responsibilities here, that I have a position to upkeep. You don’t like seeing the side of me that made me get as far as I am in this business today, and you don’t like seeing the reason behind all of my success, power, and wealth. You just like the man that overindulges you and gives you everything with the kind of success I have today – the kind of man only people can dream of. And now you realize that I’m not that man all the time. And you can’t accept that. And that’s why you’re leaving me. You’re going to fucking leave me because you’re scared of me. The worst part of all of this is that I saw it coming the very moment you asked me for a job.”  
   
Yuu’s eyes stung with anguish, undeniably hurting at how much his lover seemed to be in pain. “Kou, you made me feel like everything I’d done for you around here had been nothing but fucking _useless_. And you don’t even know the kind of pressure I’m under, daily, to make sure I’m nothing but perfect for you. Do you even hear the kind of words that escape your mouth sometimes? How would you feel if someone said these kinds of things to you?”  
   
Kouyou’s words came out cold. “Suck it up, and move on with my life. Because that’s how you learn in the corporate world. You grow a heart of steel.”  
   
Yuu’s lower lip quivered, disheartened by the blond’s reply.  
   
“Then I don’t know if I want to be with this heart of steel.”  
   
Kouyou’s face softened, his features now concerned at how Yuu was seemingly set on leaving his side. “Yuu, _princess_ , please – I went overboard. I can’t promise it won’t happen again, but this is how I am at work. And I definitely don’t think you should work for me anymore. But I really don’t want to lose you over this, alright, sweetheart? I can’t risk this. I can’t risk you.”  
   
“You already did, you risked your everything ten minutes ago,” Wet, hot tears gathered around the raven’s eyes, and Yuu tried in vain to blink them away. “You broke my fucking heart.”  
   
Fear overtook Kouyou.  
   
“And now you’re breaking mine,” he said, softly.  
   
“I’m glad I am,” Yuu raised an arm to wipe desperately at his eyes. “I’m glad it’s breaking.”  
   
Kouyou felt a knife twist further inside of him, and he took a step forward, despairingly reaching out for Yuu’s arm. “I’m not losing you over this, Yuu. It’ll never happen again, princess, I swear. Let’s talk this through, alright? Please, _babydoll_ , you know I need you–” Yuu only took a step backwards in response, pulling away insistently at his touches.  
   
“It was just a fucking file,” Yuu sobbed out, disappointed tears running down his pale cheeks. “I can’t believe you chose it over me.”  
   
“I didn’t–”  
   
“You did,” the raven-haired cried. “You risked me.”  
   
And Kouyou didn’t say any more, because he knew that –  
   
in a moment of impulse  
   
– he did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ah. now the _story_ starts. (hey I updated quickly this time!!!! yooooOOO)
> 
> and this time it isn't going to be easily solved by some make-up sex like what taka and aki did. seems like the semes are each taking turns getting mad.... except I'd say aki's one was more justified.
> 
> my drama-loving ass is back at it again...... :x lol, Kouyou is always being an asshole. I hate reading angst but I get so much pleasure writing it, it's insane.
> 
> I think my favourite lines writing this chapter were - _I know now that a man at his workplace isn’t the same man that takes care of me lovingly back at home._ and of course Kouyou's heartbreaking - _Ah. I see… You don’t want me anymore._ I'll have to admit, at this point I was like nooooOOOooooo I'll love you Kouyouuuuuu
> 
> comments are so loved as usual ♡


	57. the Office VII

_Mm…_  
   
Yuu’s slender fingers grasped at the soft white sheets underneath him, relishing in how comfortable the mattress was, and how it was doing him wonders for his sore back. It felt like he’d been sleeping for an amazingly long time; which was a considered a privilege for him nowadays, seeing as how Yuu barely had time to catch a good wink with Kouyou’s current hectic work schedule. Yuu shifted slightly in his sleep, ears distinctively picking up on hushed voices murmuring in the background, wondering who could possibly be in Kouyou’s penthouse at this timing. Kouyou rarely had visitors – the older man was always _very_ private – but since Kouyou hadn’t called for Yuu to awaken as of yet, the raven didn’t think he needed to be up anytime soon. He took this opportunity to nuzzle his head further into the pillow beneath his head, reluctant to leave the bed. The comforting sheets always smelled so full of Kouyou’s cologne…  
   
…Wait. _Wait_. Yuu’s eyes cracked wide open once he caught a huge whiff of… disinfectant spray? The air around here smelled like friggin’ _rubbing alcohol_. Yuu’s hands clutched at his pillow, noticing the sheets were way too white for his liking. There was no way he was back in Kouyou’s penthouse.  
   
There was only one place in the world where it could smell so sanitary.  
   
And those _voices_ … Yuu lifted his head up quickly from the pillow, moving so fast he even felt a mild bloodrush. He heard the bed briefly creak as he pulled himself up against the headboard, holding his head up to steady himself a little. Now that he was facing front, and facing four white immaculately clean walls at that, it was all too clear to him where he was. In a hospital… on a hospital bed. Since _when_ did he even get admitted? Did he suffer a concussion? Now that he was trying to re-juggle his memory, he seemed to recall that his last vivid memory was having a horrible argument with Kouyou back in the office, stalking off angrily and passing by Takanori as he headed forth to the lift.  
   
Everything after that was a blur. Yuu couldn’t bring himself to remember anything else, and his head would throb violently with pain each time he tried to access that part of his memory. What the legit hell happened? Yuu couldn’t have gotten into an accident, did he? He _would_ remember if he got hit by a car. Something was dreadfully wrong with this situation he was in, but losing his memory wasn’t the worst part of it.  
   
It was the doctor and nurse that were buried in quiet discussion, standing a distance away from Yuu’s hospital bed.  
   
The doctor had his back turned to Yuu, but he didn’t have to face the raven for Yuu to figure out his identity. It was Yutaka. Yuu didn’t even have to take a second look. Yuu had spent two whole years living with his brunet best friend; he’d recognize that suave profile anywhere. Yutaka looked slightly taller now, or perhaps he simply looked far more intimidating and serious in his doctor get-up; Yuu wasn’t too entirely sure. The brunet was attired in a doctor’s white coat, his hair having been neatly combed to the side, holding a small board and pen in his hands. There was a completely different air around him – and a _good_ one, at that. Yuu was reminded of the charming gentleman that had brought him to dance under the moonlight by the sea, on the night Yutaka’s parents had thrown a celebratory gala dinner for the commencement of the building of their hospitals.  
   
_Their hospitals_.  
   
Yuu’s eyes lit up at the revelation, and then darted quickly to the desk by his bedside, trying to be as quiet as possible as his hands leaned forward to frantically rummage through the contents on it, trying to find some clue that might possibly pinpoint him to his location. There was a vase of fresh flowers laying by the side, having clearly been gifted by someone, and a phone and watch that Yuu wasn’t too sure belonged to who. He eventually found a notepad in the top drawer, one that had an elegant, cursive logo that read “Tanabe Healthcare Group” in the bottom right corner of every page.  
   
Tanabe Healthcare Group? Yuu felt his gut wrench at the knowledge. What was he doing in one of their hospitals? Yuu hadn’t kept in contact with Yutaka for two years now, though it wasn’t something that was to be blamed on either of them, for Yuu knew they’d drifted apart with no hard feelings or ill will. To _suddenly_ be seeing Yutaka face-to-face again, and without a solid explanation at all… Yuu didn’t know what to think. Had Yuu _really_ gotten into an accident? Perhaps Yutaka’s hospital had been the nearest in vicinity for him? It didn’t make sense that Kouyou wasn’t here waiting by his side, though. Yuu understood that they’d just had a horrible argument not long ago, but if Yuu had gotten into an accident, there was no doubt Kouyou would be sitting here by his side, waiting for Yuu to wake up. Kouyou was always a worrywart. He would drop everything for Yuu in a single second, no doubt. That was just one of the things Yuu loved so much about his fiancé…  
   
The female nurse engaged in quiet murmuring with Yutaka seemed to notice that the raven-haired patient had woken up, and quickly alerted the brunet doctor of Yuu’s movements. Yuu felt his heart go to a fearful standstill when Yutaka’s wide shoulders raised up and he turned his head immediately around to meet Yuu’s gaze. It had been so long since Yuu had seen Yutaka, and after two years of not seeing him, Yuu hadn’t prepared himself to ever see the brunet again. Yuu’s heart was so _not_ ready for this unexpected reunion.  
   
Those two years certainly did a number on him. Yutaka looked significantly mature – and Yuu meant _Kouyou_ ’ _s_ CEO level of mature – and the brunet definitely fit the doctor’s look to a boot, with his brows squeezed together in worried creases, his dark eyes instantly locking intensely right onto Yuu’s shy ones, sending the raven into a blinking mess, with no idea what to do with himself. Now that he could observe Yutaka much more properly, Yuu found that he had been right about Yutaka; Yutaka’s built was unquestionably much bigger now, a vast difference from the lanky body he once had. And when Yutaka walked towards Yuu, the man was taking long, huge strides of confidence, something Yuu hadn’t expected to see from the brunet.  
   
Yuu dug his fingers nervously into the sheets beneath him, unsure of what to do. His first reaction was to look down, and it was then that he noticed that he was clothed _not_ in hospital attire, but rather his own clothes. Clothes that he didn’t even recognize. Yuu had knew for a fact that he had _not_ been wearing this set of clothes for work this morning. And why was Yuu so scandalously dressed, anyway? He was wearing a long-sleeved white dress shirt, leaving the top three buttons un-buttoned, and the black pants he was adorning felt a size smaller than what he should really be wearing. It was tight enough – only for one purpose, to show off his ass – that it was _even_ getting hard to breathe in, now that Yuu was really paying attention to it. What the fuck. Yuu was dressed like he’d come out today with a plan to seduce every gay man on the street.  
   
“Yuu?” Yutaka’s voice came lovingly, and Yuu’s head immediately jolted back up, momentarily forgetting that Yutaka was now right next to him. The doctor took a seat – without so much as an invitation from the raven, Yuu might add – onto the bed, leaning himself forward so he could get closer to the raven. The brunet doctor finally let his lips curl up into a grateful smile now that he was facing Yuu, losing the solemn, grim face he had on when talking to the nurse.  
   
Reaching a hand up to cup at Yuu’s left cheek, Yutaka’s touch was soft to the core, and there was nothing but concern and worry in his gaze. Yuu didn’t realize he was holding his breath all these while as his eyes bore right into Yutaka’s ones, wondering what in the living hell was _happening_. Yuu hadn’t see him for two years and Yutaka was already finding it appropriate to act so intimately with him. Yuu couldn’t bring himself to pull away, though. He was so stunned by this entire situation that he was curious what Yutaka would do next.  
   
The female nurse took her leave soon after, quickly leaving Yuu in the company of Yutaka and Yutaka _only_. Yuu didn’t want to seem too presumptuous, but the manner Yutaka was gazing to him in indicated there was so much more than just the normal care and concern a friend would have. There was unmistakable love in his eyes, too, and gentleness that Yuu was used to seeing from Kouyou, and Yuu wasn’t too sure how to react. He was _so_ confused.  
   
“You passed out again,” Yutaka explained with a sigh, shaking his head. _Again_? What the hell – Yuu hadn’t passed out in years, now, and Yutaka was acting like the raven did this on a daily basis. And how would Yutaka know, anyway? “Yuu, you forgot to take your meds again, didn’t you? I told you… your blood pressure can get too low sometimes. You have to remember to your meds when it’s time.”  
   
Yuu was so stunned by his words that his voice came out slightly hoarse, too baffled by everything that was happening all at one go. “There’s nothing wrong with my blood pressure.” Like _hell_ there was. Yuu was young, healthy and fit. Granted, he hadn’t had a doctor’s visit in a while now, but there was no way he had blood pressure low enough that could be seen as fatal to him.  
   
“Yuu, sweetheart,” Yutaka raised a hand to tuck the raven’s stray hairs back behind his ear. Yuu tried his hardest not to wince. “I know you really don’t like those meds, but you’re twenty-eight now, and you have to start watching your health. Don’t you know how much I worry about you whenever the nurses wheel you in here? You have to take care of yourself, okay?”  
   
Twenty _fucking_ eight? Yuu went into complete shock, the feeling of dread engulfing his entire body all at once. Yuu’s only _twenty-three_. How did he age five years in one short moment? Was Yuu dreaming? And why was Yutaka speaking to him as if he was his lover? And why wasn’t Kouyou in plain sight at all? Questions quickly assailed Yuu’s mind, and he was growing so anxious about the lack of familiarity of this sudden life he was living that his breaths were getting all choked up. He didn’t understand a single thing that was going on at all.  
   
“Yutaka, I’m only _twenty-three_ ,” Yuu struggled to say through his uneven breathing, his throat tightening up in utmost terror, his eyes scanning his environment hurriedly. He _had_ to be dreaming. There was no way he belonged here.  
   
Yutaka had on a sympathetic look. “Babe, I wish I was still twenty-three, too. You’ll feel better in a bit, I promise. Do you want to get some rest for now? I’ll come pick you up when my shift’s done. I’ll prepare your favourite meal when we’re back home.”  
   
… _Home_? Yuu and Yutaka shared a home? Were they still roommates at this point in time? Wait – Yuu wasn’t co-habitating with Kouyou anymore? Yuu felt tears gradually well up at his eyes at the horrid realization. Kouyou wasn’t waiting for him around here somewhere?  
   
“No–” Yuu’s hand rushed out to grab at the side of Yutaka’s arm, begging him not to leave, a frightful look in his eye. “Don’t go, _please,_ I don’t understand what’s going on…” Kouyou wasn’t here, after all, and the only familiar thing to him right now was Yutaka’s – oddly – comforting presence. It felt as if he’d known Yutaka for a long time.  
   
And that was the strangest part of it all.  
   
Because there were feelings inside of Yuu, telling Yuu that it was alright to trust Yutaka, telling Yuu that Yutaka wasn’t here to hurt him, telling Yuu that Yutaka was someone important in his life and that he had nothing to fear with Yutaka by his side. And Yuu was going to trust that instinct of his. Because he was crazy terrified of how he didn’t understand anything that was happening to him now, and Yutaka was the only thing that was making sense.  
   
Yutaka let out another sigh, covering Yuu’s hand with his own. He seemed to realize Yuu was at an incredible unease being left alone, and sought to placate some of that fear inside of the raven.  
   
“Yuu, sweetheart,” Yutaka whispered softly, leaning his head forward so he could deliver a gentle kiss to the raven’s forehead. Yuu’s moist, bleary eyes blinked up, bewildered by how affectionately Yutaka was treating him, and yet at the same time bewildered by how Yuu was not being totally disgusted by it. It felt… _right_? It felt like Yutaka had been doing this his entire life. What was going on?  
   
“Yuu, love, I’ll stay here for a minute or two more, but I have to go soon, okay? I have patients waiting for me. My shift will be over soon, don’t worry.”  
   
“I don’t want to be alone,” Yuu murmured, his voice almost crumbling and giving way to frightened tears. He wasn’t sure if Yutaka would believe him if he told him of his plight, but he had to give it a shot. Yutaka seemed like he truly cared for the raven, and if so, he wouldn’t think the raven was crazy, right? “Yutaka, I don’t… I don’t understand anything that’s happening to me right now. I need your help… I don’t think I belong here. I was just with Kouyou in the office, and–”  
   
Yutaka flinched sharply at the mention of the blond. There was a hundred and eighty degree change in him instantly; the gentleness in his eyes went out, and the brunet’s grasp on Yuu’s hand tightened. Yuu wondered briefly if he shouldn’t have mentioned Kouyou’s name. Wait… the blond _had_ to exist in this world, right?  
   
“You went to see Kouyou… _again_?” Yutaka’s tone was immediately unwelcoming, and there was a hint of pain in his voice that didn’t go by undetected by the raven. It was plain to see that Yutaka still didn’t harbor pleasant feelings towards Kouyou, though Yuu wasn’t too sure why. It was obvious from the contempt on Yutaka’s face that Yuu must have gone to see Kouyou behind Yutaka’s back a couple of times before this, however. And Yuu wondered what for…  
   
“Yuu, I thought we talked about this. You’re married to me now, and I really don’t like it when you go to see him without reason at all. Don’t you remember how he hurt you back then? Yuu, I really thought you’d understand how I feel about you seeing him…”  
   
_Fuck_. Yutaka looked so pissed, Yuu knew it was going to be hard to explain to the brunet what had happened to him without touching upon his blond CEO lover. By this point in time, it was apparent to Yuu that he must either be dreaming, have time-travelled of some sort, or landed himself in an alternate universe where Kouyou and him were no longer lovers, and Yutaka and him were… married instead.  
   
Wait– if they were married then– _the ring…_  
   
Yuu’s eyes moved to flicker a glance to his hand, his heart trepidating wildly in his chest, expecting to see the gorgeous silver-onyx rose carved ring that Kouyou had gotten for him.  
   
But it wasn’t there.  
   
Instead of the engagement ring that Yuu was so used to seeing, Yuu came into sight with a simple silver wedding band, alternating sapphire and diamond baguettes. Clean-cut, classy, and pristine enough. It was beautiful, in a sense that it was exactly Yutaka’s style, and was a ring that Yuu was certain had been chosen entirely by his brunet best friend. If Yuu had to envision a ring that Yutaka would give to his eventual bride, this would be it. And it was beautiful, yes, but it wasn’t a ring that truly belonged to his ring finger. Yuu felt harrowing dread wash over his heart when he recalled how angry he had been back in the office, arguing with Kouyou over that piece of folder. Yuu had thought to himself back then how much he’d wanted Kouyou’s ring off his finger, detesting the very sight of it, not wanting to have anything to do with the blond for the rest of his life.  
   
And now Yuu had gotten _exactly_ what he’d wanted, with ring and fiancé entirely gone from his life.  
   
“Babe, I really have to go now,” Yutaka promptly declared, sounding and looking much more agitated than before, now that he’d heard news of Yuu visiting Kouyou again. He ran a hand up his hair, messing with it in vexation, an irked look in his eyes, pulling himself off the bed. “I’ll come get you in an hour or two, Yuu. Just stay here and try to get some rest, okay?”  
   
“I’m sorry,” Yuu apologized, sensing Yutaka’s anger, the words leaving his mouth faster than he thought it. It was almost as if the raven’s mouth had grown accustomed to apologizing to the brunet – but _what for_?  
   
“Yutaka, I shouldn’t have mentioned…”  
   
“Honey, it’s okay,” Yutaka frowned, and Yuu’s heart slackened when he realized there was a certain tenderness to the brunet’s voice still. Yutaka still cared for and loved him, despite all that had happened between them. “I’m glad you were honest about it and told me. I just don’t want you seeing him again, okay? You promised me you wouldn’t, anymore. Remember your promise to me five months ago?”  
   
_…What the hell did I promise Yutaka five months ago?_  
   
“I do,” Yuu lied through his teeth, watching as his doctor husband left the room swiftly. The raven mentally crossed Yutaka out of his list of people that had a probability of believing the raven wasn’t out of his mind for claiming he’d woken up in the wrong universe. With the way things were going with Yutaka – they clearly had a lot of history that made Yutaka anxious and skittish about Yuu’s words – Yuu didn’t think the brunet would take Yuu’s confession to not _actually_ being his husband too well. Yutaka looked upset enough that Yuu was seeing Kouyou behind his back, but Yuu wasn’t sure why, either.  
   
Unless Yuu had been seeing _seeing_ Kouyou. Unless his visits to Kouyou hadn’t been entirely innocent.  
   
Then that would make complete sense as to why Yutaka appeared so wounded each time the blond was mentioned.  
   
Fuck. Twenty-eight years old Yuu proved to be a mess. Was this really what Yuu was going to turn out in five years? Dressing like a skank and whoring out with his ex behind his husband’s back? _Jesus Christ_. Maybe if Yuu went back to sleep now, he would wake up in Kouyou’s loving arms. Kouyou’s hold was always so warm, so protective, so familiar to Yuu. And his scent… _God_ , Kouyou’s homely scent…  
   
Yuu was missing Kouyou so much already.  
   
~  
   
Sleep turned out to be futile. Yuu didn’t magically awaken to Kouyou’s strong arms, or sweet cooing murmurs from Kouyou’s deep, soothing voice. Instead, Yuu woke up to Yutaka’s hand on his cheek, gently nudging the raven-haired awake. Yuu fluttered his eyes open to the husband he never wanted, and a life he thought he’d made sure not to choose a long, long time ago.  
   
Yutaka was gentle, though, Yuu had to give him that. And under any other circumstances, Yutaka would have been the perfect husband. Yutaka _was_ the perfect husband. Yutaka took great care in rousing Yuu awake, keeping a soft tone with him, never speaking with Yuu too loudly in fear of frightening the raven. He grabbed the watch and phone lying on the desk by the beside and slipped it into his pockets, which Yuu now realized probably belonged to the raven’s own self. The doctor then helped Yuu up with one arm, slowly coaxing him out of bed, his lips pressed to the side of Yuu’s hair.  
   
“Still feeling weak?” Yutaka questioned, a troubled gaze on Yuu. “You must be hungry. I’ll get you some food in no time. I’ll make you your favourite soup, okay? Don’t worry about it.”  
   
Yuu’s heart drummed silently in his chest, warmed by how sweetly the brunet was treating him. It’d been so long since he’d seen and came into contact with Yutaka, and Yuu had almost forgotten how attentive and kind Yutaka always was to him. The brunet never failed to take note of Yuu’s wants and wishes, and he’d do anything out of his way just to make Yuu happy.  
   
Yuu felt instant guilt sweep over him, knowing he hadn’t reached out to the brunet as much as he should. It really was no one’s fault that they both eventually drifted apart, and perhaps it was even for the best, considering their history. Plus, the last time Yuu had seen Yutaka, it had been in the library on their college campus, and Yutaka had assured Yuu that all was well in his life and he’d gotten a girlfriend of his own. So there was nothing to be worried about, right? Yuu was sure Yutaka was busy enough with his own life, now.  
   
In this life, though, it occurred to Yuu that he had a chance to catch a glimpse of the life Yutaka had always wanted with him. Because everything was too good to be true, and everything had fallen into place just like the way Yutaka wanted – Yutaka becoming a doctor at his family-owned hospital, Yuu being married to him, them owning a house together. This path had _almost_ been the route that Yuu had taken, back when he’d ignored Kouyou’s efforts in reconciliation and decided to seek comfort in Yutaka’s arms instead. Which made the raven-haired wonder – at which point in time in this life of his did the route to being with Yutaka begin to map out?  
   
“Yutaka,” Yuu called out softly, shuffling from out of the bed to the door with Yutaka’s support. It surprised the raven how much more muscular and fit Yutaka was now; the brunet must have begun working out regularly these recent years. That, or working as a doctor gave him enough exercise around these parts.  
   
“What is it?” Yutaka asked, extending a hand out to pull open the door in front of them. Yuu only noticed now that his room was significantly bigger than the average hospital room, with even a large balcony outside that he could have stepped out onto awhile ago. Yuu must have been allocated to a suite room in the hospital, or something of that equivalent, despite only having passed out, nothing else. Yuu guessed this must be included in the perks of having a doctor as your husband…  
   
“Do you remember the day we made our relationship official?” Yuu asked in the sweetest tone he could muster, hoping his question could come off in a teasing manner, like he was asking a question he already knew the answer to. It’d seem odd if he didn’t, and Yuu _really_ wanted to know at which point in his life did he begin to choose Yutaka over Kouyou.  
   
“Why are you suddenly asking me this?” Yutaka’s lips moved up into a delighted grin, visibly happy now that he saw Yuu acting playful with him once more. “Of course I remember. It was the day after Kouyou showed up at our college trying to win you back with an ugly bouquet of roses. We showed it to him, remember? The next day, you told me you wanted to take a chance with me. That you’d gotten tired of all of these games with older men, and you should have known I was the one for you all these while.”  
   
Yuu felt his heart smash to a million pieces. He remembered that day all too clearly; and he’d only been twenty-one, and Yutaka twenty-two, then. Which meant that moving in with Takanori after that didn’t happen. Which meant that getting back with Kouyou never happened. Which meant that the engagement ring didn’t happen. Which meant that every birthday after that, he’d spent it with Yutaka. Not the blond.  
   
“Kouyou came back to look for me, didn’t he? After he came back from Europe,” Yuu said quietly, wondering if the blond had even done so in this lifetime. Because even back then, Takanori and Akira must have persuaded the blond to come back for Yuu and give it another go, didn’t they? Takanori and Akira wouldn’t let him down. Only they knew how upset Yuu and Kouyou got each time they separated from each other.  
   
Yutaka stopped in his tracks at Yuu’s words, a quizzical look on his face.  
   
“Europe? Kouyou never went to Europe.”  
   
Yuu felt the last piece of hope inside of him wither away, like the last petal of a dead flower finally finding its place on the ground.  
   
_Right_. Since Yuu had agreed to begin a relationship with Yutaka right after Kouyou’s confrontation at the school, the brunet never had reason to storm into Kouyou’s office. Kouyou never had a reason to go to Europe because there had been no catalyst. Maybe the thought hadn’t even occurred to him then; maybe Kouyou saw no need for it. And so Kouyou never had a chance to come back and seek another try with the raven. Perhaps it was because Yuu had always been so dead-set on being with Yutaka that Kouyou had thought it to be a lost cause. Perhaps Takanori had seen Yuu’s hatred for the blond, and thought Kouyou’s chance to be with Yuu to be over.  
   
And so perhaps in this lifetime, they never had that second chance.  
   
“Dr. Yutaka, you’re leaving already?”  
   
The group of nurses that passed them by were giggling flirtatiously to themselves as Yuu and Yutaka made their way down the corridors of the hospital; the nurses making no effort to hide the admiration and love in their eyes as they looked to Yutaka. Yuu wasn’t surprised that Yutaka was popular in this hospital. Yutaka had always been a looker, especially with how handsomely he’d matured into his looks now, and he was so, _so_ charming with how gently he treated the people he cared about – specifically his lover. Yuu felt himself grow strangely possessive as he saw Yutaka turn his head to greet them with a smile, politely waving them off with a nod.  
   
“I have to get Yuu home. I’ll see you guys tomorrow,” Yutaka bade them goodbye, offering nothing more than a small smile to his colleagues. His attention soon returned to Yuu thereafter, making sure the raven was safe and sound in his arms.  
   
“The nurses here like you a lot,” Yuu noted, with an eyebrow raised. He wasn’t too mad, though, since he’d always known Yutaka would make a great and likeable doctor. Yutaka had turned out exactly like Yuu thought he would. Yutaka had always had excellent character, he just needed some years to grow into it.  
   
“It’s nothing,” Yutaka chided, brushing it off. “I’ll take over the hospital eventually. Everyone wants to be nice to me.”  
   
“I’m sure it’s not just that,” Yuu laughed, teasing the brunet. Yutaka looked to him with a wry smile, liking how extra playful Yuu was being to him today. “You always don’t know how attractive you are.”  
   
“All that matters to me is that _you_ find me attractive enough,” Yutaka chuckled, unable to control his grin widening at the unexpected compliment. “You’re the apple of my eye, after all.”  
   
“I thought an apple a day kept the doctor away,” Yuu sang, too caught up in having fun with teasing the brunet. He used to talk to Yutaka all the time like this, making jokes, embarrassing Yutaka and making him shy, laughing; and he’d missed it. He’d missed all the times they had fun with just each other’s company, spending time in each other’s presence, getting each other like no one else got them. After Yuu had met Kouyou, such conversations between him and Yutaka had dwindled down to practically _nil_ , seeing as how Kouyou mostly bore the brunt of Yuu’s teasing.  
   
And then it hit him.  
   
_Oh_. Yuu’s eyes fluttered up to meet Yutaka’s adoring gaze on him, his heart plunging deep from within. Yuu hadn’t ever understood it before, but now he got it _completely._ No wonder Yutaka was always so resentful of the older blond. Kouyou had replaced Yutaka’s place in Yuu’s heart. Other than being a lover, Kouyou had become Yuu’s best friend, too. Which meant that Yuu no longer sought comfort in Yutaka’s arms once he found thicker, stronger arms; ones that solely belonged to Kouyou.  
   
“You’re too cute,” Yutaka laughed, leaning over to nuzzle his cheek warmly against Yuu’s one. “You always make me so happy.”  
   
Yuu felt his heart swell up at the admission. Taking a long, shuddering breath, he wondered silently if _his_ Yutaka was truly happy. The one he hadn’t contacted in two years. The one he’d left for Kouyou. The one that had made mistakes, all for the sake of trying to win the one love of his life back.  
   
“It… means so much to me that you are,” Yuu managed to whisper out, pangs of conscience weighing on his mind.  
   
Yuu knew he wasn’t the rightful Yuu that belonged to this universe, but perhaps Yuu could pretend to be. Just for a little while. Just to see Yutaka happy like this. It wouldn’t be too selfish for Yuu to do so, would it? Just for his heart to attain some peace? Yuu hadn’t realized he’d missed seeing such happiness on Yuu’s face until now. In fact, his last few memories of the brunet had always been of Yutaka in tears.  
   
Yuu had done him _so_ wrong.  
   
~  
   
Yutaka used to tell Yuu that he would do his best to be everything that Yuu wanted, to be a man of success, wealth and power, and Yuu had forgotten all about it until he was led to Yutaka’s black Audi, and later on, driven back to their penthouse. Yutaka had gotten it all – a good profession, a luxurious car, and a billion-dollar home. He’d made effort to brush up on his own physique, as well, and Yuu was stunned to see that Yutaka had turned into one of the very men Yuu would have used to sugar baby for. Except that Yutaka made sure to do all of this for him. That Yuu was his very motivation behind every of his success; and it was something that Yuu fondly noted with bittersweet feelings stirring inside of him. He still wasn’t sure what kind of dream this was, but he knew it was everything Yutaka would have wanted.  
   
But not Yuu.  
   
The penthouse they lived in looked like it’d come straight out of a furnishing magazine. There was a lift inside of their penthouse, for god’s sake. And everything else was made out of glass; there were hardly any doors, and the entire place was practically see-through with all their surrounding glass panels. There was a pool outside, too, on their rooftop terrace, and Yuu could barely believe his eyes as he glanced out of the glass panels and saw that their penthouse was overlooking a gorgeous view of the city with its many skyscrapers. Now that it was nearing sunset, you could catch such an amazing view of the sky’s horizon, too, and Yuu found himself in awe as his eyes scanned past the sight.  
   
He… _lived_ here? It wasn’t that Kouyou’s own penthouse back at home wasn’t impressive – it _was_ , and it was decorated as flashy as any other rich man’s house, but Yutaka here _seriously_ overdid it. Yutaka’s home showed genuine effort in doing up the place to make it look as excessive as possible, as if having bought a penthouse wasn’t enough to showcase his wealth. The furnishing itself must have cost a bomb.  
   
“Babe, you can go take your shower first,” Yutaka suggested once they entered their home, loosening the Rolex watch off his wrist and dumping it onto the glass dining table by the living room. Yuu winced at how carelessly Yutaka was treating his possessions – that watch did _not_ look cheap. “I’ll prepare dinner in the meantime. Call me if you need me, okay?”  
   
Yuu simply nodded, deciding to go along with Yutaka’s instructions seeing as he didn’t really know what else to do. He located the stairs (made of glass, too) to the right side of the living room and made his way slowly up, eyes bulging the whole time as he ogled at the house he lived in. This was his life? Yuu was going to be honest here. This life didn’t seem too bad. It seemed nice, even. It seemed… _perfect_. Too perfect. It was everything Yuu could have possibly wanted.  
   
Yuu knew that he’d traded off something – or someone – very important for all of this, though. And he knew at the end of the day, nothing, no amount of luxury could ever compare to the one person that would give life to Yuu in one heartbeat.  
   
It was Kouyou.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> he's back. and not in a way y'all might like, but he's back :p (also woW my updates are getting really steady!!! pray that I keep this up hahaha)
> 
> so many questions... comments are so loved and motivate me the most T_T <3 what do you think of this sudden turn of events~
> 
> I always wanted to write out how Yuu and Yutaka's life would have turned out if Yuu had chosen Yutaka instead XD;; I'm kind of writing this out of fanservice for myself lol


	58. the Office VIII

Yuu was pretty sure twenty-eight years old Yuu was a skank. OK, fine, he wouldn’t outrightly call himself a whore, but the raven only needed to sift through his wardrobe for a whole of ten seconds to know that twenty-eight years old him was severely fond of tight shirts, even tighter pants, and _very_ revealing lingerie – which gave him dead pause when he began to realize that he must be wearing this for Yutaka… which also meant that they must have a pretty active sex life for him to own so many. Yuu’s only available home-wear were oversized T-shirts that looked to be of Yutaka’s size; as well as cute boxer shorts that did little to cover Yuu’s round bottoms. To put it plainly, Yuu dressed like he was out to seduce his husband every second of the day.  
   
Damn. Kouyou would kill to see Yuu like this everyday. If _his_ Kouyou knew where Yuu was at right now, he would be so upset. Where was Kouyou now, anyway? Was he missing the raven’s presence? If Yuu’s conscienceness was present here, that meant he wasn’t with his blond fiancé, right? Was Kouyou waiting for Yuu to return to him somewhere? What was going on…  
   
Yuu felt his heart grow heavy with thoughts of the blond as he gazed to the full-length mirror placed in the master bedroom, settling for a grey oversized tee and pink boxer shorts in the end. It had been one of the few that was of decent length, and Yuu was never one that was ever particular about how short his shorts usually were in the first place. Whoever allowed Yuu to go shopping? It felt as if Kouyou had done the shopping for him instead.  
   
Yuu cursed himself when he realized his mind had wandered off to Kouyou _again_. He was so used to being around Kouyou and including him in his every thought that having to force himself not to think about him felt like torture. Yuu still didn’t know why or what he was here for, but he knew he couldn’t do anything about it for now. Even Yuu was surprising himself with how unusually calm he was going about this entire situation. He’d decided he’d just go with the flow, and attempt to understand the life he’d woken up without reason to. There had to be something he was here for, right? Yuu would have more time to figure out what it was later. Besides, if it was just a dream, he’d have to wake up _eventually_. Yuu knew he didn’t belong here, and he had faith there would be an end. Somehow. Hopefully.  
   
As for now… he knew Yutaka was still waiting for him downstairs.  
   
Yuu grabbed for a nearby scrunchie lying around a tabletop and swiftly tied his hair back up into a high ponytail, noting that his hair was far shorter than it had been back when he was in the office with Kouyou. Kouyou seemed to like his hair long, so Yuu often kept it as long as he could. Right now, though, Yuu’s hair was of a medium length, and only fell as far as to his shoulders. Yuu soon headed back down the stairs to where the living room and kitchen lay, with the delicious aroma of freshly cooked food filling his nose quickly after.  
   
Yutaka had his back turned to Yuu as he busied himself with the kitchen stove, applying the finishing touches to whatever he’d prepared for dinner. Now that Yutaka was fully out of his doctor get-up, Yuu was able to sneak a better look of the brunet’s muscled figure. Yutaka’s long shirt sleeves had been rolled up to his elbow, revealing beefy arms that the raven found himself unintentionally gawking at incredulously. Holy _shit._ How much had Yutaka been working out? The past five years must have been _extremely_ kind to the brunet doctor, to say the very least. Yutaka’s hair was slightly more messed up now that he’d just ended his shift at the hospital, and Yuu found himself swallowing saliva down his throat thickly as he admired Yutaka’s striking side-profile. The brunet was wearing on a rather somber expression now, his eyes furrowing deep in concentration towards the meal he was currently cooking. There was that frown on his face that he always had on when he thought no one was looking – at least _that_ part of him hadn’t changed a single bit.  
   
Now, Yuu wasn’t planning on cheating by any means, Yuu would _never_ even think about it; but it was safe for him to say that twenty-nine years old Yutaka far exceeded his expectations of what an ideal partner should be. Not only was he _extremely_ aesthetically appealing (Yuu refused to use the word _hot_ ), there was also something so attractive about a man that knew how to take care of his lover, and Yutaka was being incredibly thoughtful for cooking up a little something for Yuu despite having just had a long day at work. Yutaka used to do this all the time for the raven, never mind how tired he was, knowing exactly what Yuu liked and disliked to eat; and all of these was beginning to bring back a sense of friendly nostalgia to the raven-haired.  
   
“Smells good,” Yuu commented, a smile on his face as his feet skipped over the last few steps of the glass stairs. Yutaka’s head perked up at the raven’s voice, and he gave a quick look behind, his face lighting up once he came into sight with his lover. There was a slight falter in Yutaka’s gaze as his eyes swept over Yuu, travelling down Yuu’s figure, holding his gaze there as if sizing Yuu’s body up, and Yuu halted in his tracks right away, feeling mild discomfort at how blatantly his best friend was leering at his body.  
   
He knew they were _technically_ married, but Yuu still couldn’t get too used to such a fact. Just the very thought that they had a very active sex life (all that lingerie found in his wardrobe most likely hadn’t been bought for random modelling sessions at home, as much as Yuu hoped that they were) disturbed Yuu already, and he wasn’t too sure how to take all of this in without feeling an urge to hurl. He had never pictured being intimate with Yutaka, never even _kissed_ the brunet back in his own life, and here Yuu was, having to confront the fact that he’d married his ex-best friend, and most probably making love to him every other night.  
   
“It’ll be ready in a sec,” Yutaka shook off his depraved stare and focused back onto his cooking. Yuu immediately relaxed once Yutaka no longer had his eyes on him. “Go on and take a seat by the dining table. Oh, by the way, your parents called a few minutes ago. They heard that you’d passed out again and got worried. I assured them you had plenty of rest and that you were well on your feet again, don’t worry.”  
   
Yuu was taken aback by the news. “My parents called?” Despite being their only child, Yuu had moved to live in a few states away from them to attend college, desperate to experience a more city-like life rather than the small town he’d come from. He was on good terms with his parents, yes, but Yuu called back only once or twice a month, not seeing the need to worry his parents too much with his life.  
   
Back when he’d been struggling to pay off his student debt while juggling college at the same time, Yuu had been too embarrassed – and tired from his multiple jobs – to call back on several occasions, and often put them off until it was necessary. He was surprised to hear that Yutaka had gotten close to his parents, to the extent they knew of Yuu’s horrid health situation. Which reminded him… What the living hell happened to his blood pressure? He was only twenty-eight years of age, _Jesus Christ._  
   
“I know you’re afraid of worrying them, but it’s my duty as your husband to inform them of such things,” Yutaka sighed, as if he was already expecting a scolding from his lover for doing so. He turned off the stove when he was done cooking, scooping them all up onto plates. “Your dizzy spells are getting worse. It’s my fault, I don’t think I’m feeding you enough.”  
   
Yuu frowned, not liking how Yutaka was pinning the blame solely onto himself. “How did I faint this time, anyway?”  
   
“You don’t remember?” Yutaka turned to him, a plate in hand, instantly immensely distressed by the information. Fuck. Yuu forgot he was a doctor. Yutaka would most likely diagnose him with a worse condition if he figured out Yuu had become amnesic. “You happened to be making your way to visit me at the hospital for lunch. You fainted along the corridor. You’re lucky it happened at the hospital. It would have been so much worse if you did so elsewhere… Like last time.”  
   
By this time, Yutaka had moved to deliver the plates of steaming hot food onto the dining table right in front of Yuu, dusting his hands off once he was finished.  
   
“You should hurry eat up, babe. I made sure to prepare all your favourite food, so this time you can’t wiggle your way out of not finishing any of them.”  
   
Nodding obediently in response, Yuu felt a warm tingling sensation in his heart, moved by Yutaka’s thoughtfulness. Then, he noticed Yutaka was beginning to make a move past the dining table to the stairs, displaying no intention to take a seat down and have dinner with Yuu.  
   
“Hey…” Yuu stopped him midway. “Aren’t you going to come sit and eat with me, too?”  
   
Yutaka’s eyes were kindled with surprise at the offer, as if such requests were a rarity from the raven. The doctor turned his head quickly back to face his lover, looking as though he were about to melt at Yuu’s words.  
   
“Really? I’m, uh, rather sweaty, and kind of stink. I should probably take a shower first…”  
   
The smile on Yutaka’s face remained unfazed, though. It was obvious he was incredibly delighted to hear that Yuu wanted him to remain by his side.  
   
“But it’s been such a long day, and you were so sweet to make me dinner,” Yuu argued, making sure to accompany his protest with a huge pout, knowing Yutaka could never resist it when he was acting adorable like _this_ in order to get his way. Yutaka’s gaze softened even further at the sight. “You don’t stink to me. Just come and have dinner with me, okay?”  
   
Yutaka gave in practically immediately, unable to refuse Yuu if the raven so wanted his company. “I mean… if you don’t mind my stench…”  
   
“Just take a seat, dummy,” Yuu laughed, reaching an arm out for his fingers to grasp at Yutaka’s shirt. The brunet was quickly dragged over to be seated in the chair next to Yuu, leaving Yutaka with a silly grin on his face as the raven did so.  
   
“You’re so childish,” Yutaka lamented, rolling his eyes up with a laugh. Yuu met his laugh with a conniving giggle. “But you’re so different today, Yuu… I’m glad you look so happy.”  
   
Yuu slackened his grip on Yutaka’s chest, his interest piqued. “Different? How so?”  
   
Was the twenty-eight year old Yuu, that Yutaka was used to, much more glum and moody as compared to him? Then again, Yuu wasn’t too sure how the _him_ in this universe acted. The only thing the raven was certain of was that _he_ definitely had a preference for tight clothes. Preferably clothes tight enough to accentuate his lean figure.  
   
…OK, seriously, was Kouyou his own secret personal shopper or something?  
   
“It’s just… We’ve been arguing a lot lately,” Yutaka’s smile wore off as the words left his lips rather apologetically, his eyes downcast. Yuu took notice of how dejected he suddenly looked, and grew concerned. “It’s no one’s fault, of course. I know my work can take too much of time. Especially away from you...”  
   
Yuu felt the doctor’s sorrowfully said words tug at his heartstrings. “Why would I be mad about your work? I know how much being a doctor means to you.”  
   
Twenty-eight year old Yuu was an asshole if he couldn’t even understand Yutaka’s demanding work schedule. Yutaka’s dream had been to become a doctor all his life, and it was natural that such a noble profession demanded long hours, as well as full devotion from Yutaka to his job. Yuu couldn’t fault Yutaka for choosing to pay extra attention to his patients over him, since sometimes all it took was some medical attention to save a person from the brink of death. Yuu was proud of Yutaka for being a doctor, even. Yuu would never find it within him to be upset over Yutaka’s dedication to his work.  
   
Yutaka seemed more assured after what he’d just heard, his eyes promptly gleaming up at his answer. “Really? It’s just… You haven’t looked too happy about it at all. It’s been worrying me. Our fights must be taking a toll on your health. I’m full of guilt each time I have to give a call to your parents to inform them what happened to you. I promised them I would take care of you when I married you, but…”  
   
“Yutaka,” Yuu silenced his doubts with a gentle whisper, raising his fingers up to caress comfortingly at Yutaka’s cheek. “I still have no idea why my health seems to be full of shit, but it has nothing to do with you. Or us. I’m sorry for all of the fights we had in the past, alright?” Even if Yuu couldn’t remember any of them. “Look… I have the perfect life with you. You’re everything, and more, that I could have asked for. Please don’t worry about me.” Even if this wasn’t the life Yuu asked for.  
   
Yutaka’s face livened up. “Really, Yuu?” He looked sheepish, as if in disbelief of how sweet Yuu was being to him, looking so much like a dog that just been given treats by his usually stern owner. Yuu managed a soft laugh.  
   
“Stop being such a dummy. Let’s dig in, I’m hungry from all these talking already,” Yuu complained, his other hand rubbing fervently at his stomach. “And your home-cooked food _really_ is the best!”  
   
Yutaka let loose a few chuckles, happy to see that his hard work was being appreciated. “I’m glad they never fail to water your appetite. Even after so long.”  
   
“Are you crazy? They’re the best,” Yuu made a face to him, gaping towards the food on the dining table. “I’d be out of my mind if I didn’t take advantage of this co-habitating situation to eat your meals everyday.” Then, Yuu added as an afterthought: “Well, not everyday, of course. I’m sure your schedule tires you out enough already.”  
   
Yutaka shook his head insistently, still smiling. “Yuu, I’ll cook for you as long you want me to. It’s my job to take care of you.”  
   
Yuu felt his heart constrict at his earnestly said statement. He’d looked so much like the twenty-two year old Yutaka that Yuu remembered so fondly right then that it almost hurt. The way the sunset filtered through the penthouse’s glass panels and painted its lovely rays against Yutaka’s face at this exact moment made him look so… _beautiful._ Yuu hadn’t seen those twinkling eyes for the longest time; hadn’t seen that heartfelt smile raise up on Yutaka’s face, his cheeky dimples etched deep by the side of his mouth. This was the Yutaka he’d known since so long ago, alright. Yutaka hadn’t changed one single bit. He’d never stopped caring for Yuu, right from day one.  
   
“I’m not the twenty-one year old helpless Yuu you know anymore,” Yuu murmured quietly, remorse beginning to trickle into his heart. “You don’t have to take care of me like I’m fragile glass.” It hadn’t dawned unto him how much he’d missed Yutaka’s presence until now. He only realized now it wasn’t his circumstances that had drawn him close to Yutaka in the hospital; it wasn’t just because Yuu felt lost and disoriented in his new surroundings that he thought Yutaka to be the most familiar thing to him.  
   
Yuu had _always_ felt safe with Yutaka around… He’d just forgotten the feeling, and Yutaka’s presence now was reminding him what it’d been like, once upon a time, not too long ago. Yuu had never felt anything, other than being protected and secure, when he was with the brunet. Yutaka always made it a point to put Yuu first, and it showed. Yuu could trust him with his entire life. And all because Yutaka was in love with him.  
   
“You’ll always be the twenty-one year old Yuu I fell in love with,” Yutaka said, lowering his lashes just slightly, a faraway look in his dark brown eyes. “You haven’t changed one bit from the very first time I saw you. You’re still so beautiful, so unattainable, so perfect… and now you’re unbelievably mine. So I have to do everything within my power to give you the life you deserve. I won’t ever let you suffer when you’re with me. I promised this to you so long ago… Remember?”  
   
Of course Yuu remembered; the brunet had mapped out their entire lives together since so long ago. That very night at the dinner party where Yutaka had  revealed his future plans for the both of them to Yuu, the raven-haired had realized then how much he _couldn’t_ see himself living out such a life. That Yuu wasn’t going to be happy waiting at home all day for Yutaka to return home from work; that Yuu wouldn’t be able to love Yutaka as much as Yutaka would ever love him. But maybe Yutaka had always known as such, and maybe it still never mattered to Yutaka. All the older man ever cared about was Yuu’s decision to give him a chance to lead this life out with him, all Yutaka ever needed was for Yuu to stay.  
   
And in this lifetime, Yuu had stayed. He’d stayed, he’d married the brunet out of his own will, and from the likes of it, he hadn’t been too good a lover to Yutaka, despite the decision he’d chosen to make by himself in the first place. Was it really that fair to Yutaka, then? To give your all to someone, and never have your love be reciprocated in return? Yuu had given him his word at the altar, after all, and it wasn’t just his heart that Yutaka was giving to Yuu. It was also his life. His time, his loyalty, his devoutness. Yutaka clearly prioritized Yuu every step of the way, and yet Yuu wasn’t bringing himself to do the same for him. But couldn’t Yuu at least try? Even if Yuu couldn’t feel an ounce of romantic love for his doctor husband now – couldn’t love be nurtured?  
   
Yuu would never be able to make _his_ Yutaka happy. Yuu didn’t even have a clue as to how the brunet was faring now, back in his own life; Yuu hadn’t made any attempts to find out. And perhaps Yuu might never see him again. And perhaps it was best that he didn’t, since he’d forsaken Yutaka’s entire heart back then in exchange for Kouyou’s. Who was Yuu then to tell Yutaka that his love wasn’t real for him? Who had Yuu been, back then, to tell Yutaka that he was blowing his love out of proportion, and that he’d just been making everything up? That Yutaka didn’t love Yuu in the first place, and only mistook his need to be depended upon by Yuu for love instead?  
   
Because all Yuu could see now was – undisputedly – love in Yutaka’s eyes, in his voice, in his every action for the raven. Yutaka _loved_ him, from the bottommost of his heart. And Yuu wasn’t going to just take this away from him, like how painfully he’d done so before. Yuu hadn’t any right to.  
   
“Hey,” the raven began in a soft voice, feeling his eyes begin to prickle with tears. Everything was coming to him all at once, and perhaps this dream of some sort was reminding him of the overwhelming guilt he’d always buried deep down inside of him; perhaps Yuu was here to remember just how kindly Yutaka had always treated him, and how Yuu had always given nothing in return.  
   
Had Yuu failed him?  
   
“I’m really sorry I… I haven’t been as good to you as I should have.”  
   
I’m really sorry I never called. I’m really sorry I haven’t checked up on you as much as I should have; I’m really sorry I never got to be the best friend you needed all these while.  
   
The sudden devastation in Yuu’s eyes was apparent, and Yutaka was immediately worried, wondering if he’d accidentally said or done something wrong to instigate such a reaction. “Yuu, sweetheart, it’s okay. I know we have we may fight sometimes, but it’s all part and parcel of married life. I’m just so happy you’re here next to me right now. And that everything is in place. Yuu, it means so much to me that you care for me. That’s all I need, babe, I promise.”  
   
_I tried so hard and I waited so long. And I thought I would finally have my chance now. I really did. I thought you were going to love me. You still can, Yuu. Please. Just give me one chance…_  
   
“That… That can’t be all you need,” Yuu found himself choking out, blinking rapidly to clear his glassy eyes. “I know I haven’t been the best.”  
   
_We aren’t made for each other. There was nothing. That will be our future, Yutaka. Bleak, empty. Without a single trace of feeling._  
   
“Yuu,” Yutaka’s voice came gravely this time, his tone deadly serious. His two hands moved to cup at Yuu’s face, looking at Yuu right in the eyes, pulling the raven’s head closer to him. “Yuu, don’t cry over this. Alright? You already are the best for me. It breaks my heart to see you like this, Yuu. You know I love you so much. I just want you to listen to me and take your meds when you know you should be taking them, alright? Your health worries me.”  
   
Yuu nodded his head slowly, his eyes shimmering with tears. “I’ll take care of my health, I promise.”  
   
“That’s all I need to hear,” Yutaka murmured, leaning his head forward to frantically capture Yuu’s lips with his. The kiss caught Yuu by ultimate surprise; he hadn’t seen it coming through his damp, dewy eyes. Yuu couldn’t bring himself to pull away from the brunet’s kiss, knowing he owed as such to Yutaka. It wasn’t Kouyou’s usual kind of softness, but it was Yutaka’s own specific type of tenderness, and Yuu thought to himself that the feeling wasn’t so bad. It was a kiss delivered from lover to lover, and it did what it was supposed to do – bring him enormous solace and reassurance. And love.  
   
Yuu could feel Yutaka’s entire beating heart with this small, gentle kiss, and Yuu didn’t even have to question it. It just was. The man loved him, and Yuu knew the brunet meant it with his whole heart. Yuu had chosen to marry his best friend in this lifetime, and it wasn’t too hard to see why. Yutaka was everything Yuu needed, and perhaps in this lifetime, Yutaka had been his perfect fit.  
   
While Kouyou hadn’t been.  
   
Yutaka’s lips felt so right against his; Yuu couldn’t bring himself to think of any other man. Yutaka ultimately had to pull away, albeit with much reluctance, and Yuu shocked himself with how equally unwilling his heart felt to part from the kiss. Yutaka’s eyes fluttered back open to meet Yuu’s, gazing down fondfully to the raven’s misty eyes.  
   
Everything felt…  
   
_I can’t imagine asking you about your patients and your work everyday, Yutaka. I can’t picture myself being happy with you._  
   
…Absolutely perfect.  
   
_But I can._  
   
“I love you,” Yutaka whispered, lips eagerly pressing another kiss to the side of Yuu’s mouth. Yuu whimpered a little in response, smiling slightly at the affectionate gesture. “Let’s dig in to our dinner now, alright? I don’t want another fainting episode to happen.”  
   
“Hey,” Yuu couldn’t resist a giggle. “I’m not _that_ weak.”  
   
_I’ll find another place. We… shouldn’t stay together, anymore._  
   
“I fear you might be.”  
   
_You’ll leave me?_  
   
“Idiot.”  
  
_I have to._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this entire chapter was just me trying to draw some parallels between their past selves and new universe selves... I hope I got my point across. :D 
> 
> yay for quick updates (I was going to bring back a familiar character to you guys in this chapter, buuutttt looks like this dining table scene dragged on longer than it should have... and so the next scene's going to be too long to be able to fit into this chap :>)
> 
> I'm sorry it's still Kaoi..... evidently none of you are excited about Yutaka's return. XD;; (I've been screamed and yelled at enough to know this) and still no answers...... I'm sorry! rest assured I don't write things pointlessly, though, so there's that. 
> 
> (also I'm really just happy to write some Yuu x Yutaka time together likeeee this is the universe they can be happy in and they're so happyyyyy)
> 
> comments are so loved as usual <3 next update might be next week though because I'm going on a little roadtrip for a bit!
> 
> also random note but-- I'm really happy you guys are still following this story even though this is the, what, 58th chapter ;_; personally I detest reading crazily long-chaptered stories, but you guys are still avidly reading so I'm sooo grateful for this ;_;


	59. the Office IX

In this universe, they were happy; fitting each other like perfect halves, complementing each other’s personalities like nobody else. Yuu always got Yutaka in ways that nobody else could, and Yutaka, the same for him. But that still didn’t completely take away the fact that Yuu wasn’t the Yuu that Yutaka expected him to be, and it still didn’t change the fact that Yuu soon found himself in a severely uncomfortable situation _again_ where they were to be headed to bed together, like any other normal, domestic, married couple would.  
   
Yuu didn’t know how their nights went, but he prayed hard to himself that it was nothing like how he and Kouyou spent their nights together. His blond CEO lover had an abnormally high sex drive that Yuu – of course, wasn’t complaining about when Kouyou had _that_ kind of bod – but if Yutaka expected the same from him, the raven-haired could foresee himself literally rolling out of the bed, down the stairs, out the door, and eventually onto the streets. Yutaka was handsome, yes, and he had gentle, dark eyes that would drown anyone who so much as glanced into them; and his current physique also proved he was in extremely good shape, and had much more to offer under all of that cloth covering his skin. But Yuu had seen Yutaka as nothing but his best friend all his life, and Yuu could go as far as sweet, melty kisses for him, but to offer sex for his love? Yuu wasn’t too entirely sure about that.  
   
Thankfully for Yuu, he didn’t have to face any awkward situation right away. While Yuu crawled into the _huge_ bed of theirs in the master bedroom, quietly settling himself down and preparing for sleep, Yutaka headed off to the bathroom instead, eagerly awaiting to begin the shower he’d been waiting to have after a long day at work. The lack of company gave Yuu more time to explore his vicinity, and the raven was quickly reaching for the phone lying on the desk by his bedside, recognizing it to be the phone he’d seen in the hospital earlier. It was clear to him that the phone belonged to him, now, and Yuu knew that if he wanted to gain an inkling of the kind of man he is – _was_ – in this lifetime, the best way to do that was to go through his phone and figure something out. Hell, maybe he could even text Takanori for help.  
   
Takanori would know what to do. Besides, if there was _anyone_ in this universe that would believe Yuu didn’t belong here, it would be Takanori. That man would suck this entire fantasy occult crossing-into-a-new-dimension thing all up excitedly. Maybe he’d even know a little trick or two for Yuu to return to the life he _actually_ resided in. Yuu’s longing for Kouyou’s presence next to him kept growing worse by the second, and Yuu wasn’t sure how much longer he could stand being apart from the blond. Yuu hated how the last memory of the blond that he could hold onto was of him and the blond fighting over a… _fucking_ piece of irrelevant folder. Actually, thinking about it now, Yuu still felt moderately upset about it. Jesus fuck. What was wrong with Kouyou? That CEO had made a huge fuss over nothing which in turn resulted in Yuu finding himself in someplace he couldn’t escape from. It was _all_ Kouyou’s fault. (And Yuu knew that he was being petty, but what the hell. That man had been petty first.)  
   
Yuu was surprised to find that his phone was password-protected, since Yuu had never bothered with such functions on his gadgets before. There was nothing he had to hide from Kouyou, and there _shouldn’t_ be. Then the raven-haired reminded himself that he was married to Yutaka in this universe, and his mouth parted slightly in an enlightened ‘o’. Yuu was still Yuu, after all, no matter what universe he belonged to. Yuu knew himself the best – and if the Yuu _now_ already knew that he wouldn’t have bothered with a passcode option if he had nothing to hide, then the Yuu _then_ must have been hiding something he didn’t want his husband to know to have enabled the passcode option on his phone. Yuu was almost afraid to find out what he had to be keeping a lid on about.  
   
First thing’s first, though – the tough part was figuring out what his goddamn password was, before anything else could be revealed.  
   
Yuu had never thought there would ever come a day where Yuu had to attempt to hack into his own phone himself, but now Yuu knew nothing was impossible. It couldn’t be too hard, could it? Yuu couldn’t outsmart his own damn self. They have the same goddamn brain. Well, let’s see… What was the most common type of password that people used? Their birthdate? Was Yuu truly _that_ generic?  
   
A quick inputting of the digits belonging to that of Yuu’s birthdate showed that Yuu wasn’t. It didn’t work. Well, good, because it would have been an awful as hell passcode, and Yuu would like to think he managed to get into a good college because he had a reasonable amount of intellect. What was the second next best option? Inputting the name of a loved one?  
   
The only one person Yuu currently treasured above his life was Kouyou. That _had_ to be it. Yuu wouldn’t have used anything else. Typing in Kouyou’s first name, and later on his full name, proved to not work, though. The frown on Yuu’s face deepened with every error message that pops up on his phone screen, refusing to believe that he couldn’t even guess his own passcode. It couldn’t be Yutaka’s name, right? Or did Yuu in this universe love his husband far more than he’d thought? Did Yuu incorrectly assume Kouyou would always be his priority, in every life he was leading, no matter what? What if Yuu truly loved Yutaka here? Why was Yuu doubting such a reality so much?  
   
However, there was a small part of the raven that had a sneaking suspicion that the Yuu here was far more disingenuous than he seemed. If he had to password-protect his phone, that was already a large warning sign that Yuu was holding secrets that he didn’t want anyone else but him to know.  
   
And so Yuu tried the very last guess he had to offer. Kouyou’s very own birthdate. If this failed him, too, Yuu really would be at a loss for options. And then _maybe_ – just maybe – he’d try inputting Yutaka’s name as a password.  
   
The moment those very digits unlocked Yuu’s phone, the raven felt a dark cloud hover immediately over his heart, feeling it begin to palpitate with a ton of unease. _It’d worked_. Kouyou’s birthdate had worked. Yuu was grateful he’d managed to find a way to clue in on the kind of person he was in this life, but at the same time, the raven’s actions so far hadn’t looked very promising. Being married to Yutaka _and_ still having Kouyou’s birthdate as his phone’s passcode? Yuu hadn’t forgotten Yutaka’s words to him from earlier in the hospital, knowing that the brunet had mentioned something about not wanting Yuu to see Kouyou ‘anymore’, as well as a promise Yuu had supposedly made to the doctor five months ago. That indicated to him that Yuu had been involved in some funny business with Kouyou for awhile, and even though Yutaka hadn’t explicitly said it, the raven was already inclining himself to think that it had been leading to a relationship that _shouldn’t_ exist.  
   
And if Kouyou’s birthday was Yuu’s phone password, then it already confirmed half his suspicions so far. That Kouyou had continued to remain the most important in his life – and possibly, his only love; and that Yuu had never truthfully gotten over the blond. Kouyou still meant everything to him, and the raven couldn’t let go of that… not even for his very own husband that he chose to wed. This wasn’t fair to Yutaka, at all, and the thought that Yuu had chose to settle for him, instead of pursuing his love for Kouyou instead, disturbed the raven. If his heart wasn’t in it, he shouldn’t have agreed to the marriage with Yutaka, shouldn’t have agreed to a life with the poor doctor who loved him _so_ much with every little piece of his heart. Yutaka had done so much for him, and he didn’t deserve a sham marriage or an unwilling heart. Yutaka deserved everything Yuu could ever give him, in return for all the hard work that Yutaka had put in just to ensure Yuu could love him.  
   
The phone unlocked to a wallpaper of Yuu and Yutaka, with the raven-haired dipping his head down against Yutaka’s built chest, his lips curled up in a small, shy smile. Yutaka had his thick arms wrapped firmly around Yuu’s body, pulling him close in his embrace, wearing an infectious smile on his face as he grinned straight to the camera. It looked like a selfie Yutaka had taken for the both of them, and going by the nice scenery in the back, they must have been travelling somewhere nice together. The photo looked recent, too, since Yuu’s hair was of a similar length, and their faces didn’t seem to have aged. They must have gone somewhere nice lately, Yuu registered in his mind. Which must mean that they weren’t _that_ bad on terms as he’d thought. Yuu must still care for his husband to an extent, to want to have placed him as his wallpaper.  
   
Or Yuu thought that it would be suspicious if he didn’t.  
   
… _Either way_. Yuu wasn’t going to dwell any further on those thoughts, since speculating so much wasn’t getting him anywhere near the truth. His home screen revealed he had three new unread messages he must have missed during his time in the hospital, and he was impatiently opening them, hoping it would could help him figure out what exactly was going on in this life.  
   
The sender didn’t even have a name labelled in his phone. _Strange_ , Yuu thought, his mouth dissolving into frown as he looked at what was in place instead. The sender only had a coffee emoji tagged to his number in Yuu’s phone, and there had been no previous text message history between Yuu and him except for the three new messages. This should mean that Yuu regularly took time to clear their chat history together… But what for?  
   
It all became clear once Yuu’s eyes scanned down past the texts.  
   
**_Unknown:_** _Princess?_  
   
**_Unknown:_** _You there?_  
  
**Unknown:** _I miss you… Come over tomorrow_  
   
Yuu became pale.  
   
Dread crept over Yuu like an icy chill, numbing his mind. His stomach locked up tight, Yuu grew slightly giddy as he tried to process the information before him. Yuu had been cheating on Yutaka. And Yuu wasn’t sure who this was, but the way this sender was calling him _Princess_ was already giving him a good hint who it was. Yuu didn’t want to say he was relieved to finally be in contact with Kouyou again, but _this_ wasn’t the way he wanted to meet him again. Not like this. Not as an extramarital affair that would hurt all parties involved. Yuu was being extremely selfish for doing this, and he knew it.  
   
But somehow Yuu knew he needed to see him. And it wasn’t really his fault, was it? Yuu wasn’t the Yuu that had _cheated._ Yuu was the Yuu that had always chosen Kouyou, no matter what route they took. And Yuu needed to see those clandestine eyes again, he needed to hear Kouyou’s calming voice, feel his heavy breaths, have those strong arms hold Yuu close and tell Yuu everything would be OK again. Tell Yuu that despite everything that they’d gotten themselves into, Kouyou had never once given up on him, had never once thought of having anyone else. That Yuu was his one and only, and Kouyou couldn’t stand being even a mere second apart from him. That Yuu was the perfect one. That they always belonged together, and nothing could ever take that away from them.  
   
Yuu felt a strange kind of sadness; one that seeped quietly into your bones without warning and weighed your heart down with a leaden feeling. Was this how twenty-eight year old Yuu felt when he realized his heart would forever lie with Kouyou, not Yutaka? Was this why twenty-eight year old Yuu did the things he did; was this why twenty-eight year old Yuu couldn’t be content living his life the way Yutaka wanted him to?  
   
Yuu would find out.  
   
**_Yuu:_** _I’ll come over tomorrow_  
  
Wait. Fuck. Was Kouyou still staying at that penthouse of his, or had he moved long ago? How would he ensure he got the right address? Would Yuu save details like that onto his phone? Yuu bit down against his tongue, deciding to try his luck as he tapped onto the coffee emoji to see if he’d saved more information under the blond’s name.  
   
The raven’s eyes glinted once he saw an address listed below. _Nice_. It wasn’t the address of the penthouse that Yuu and Kouyou lived in, but it sounded fancy enough to sound like what Kouyou might be staying in now.  
   
**_Unknown:_** _Great… I’ll be waiting_  
   
Yuu clutched the phone tighter in his hand upon receiving the new text, his heart drumming with anticipation at the thought of seeing his beloved again soon.  
   
“Babe?”  
   
Yutaka’s voice startled him, and immediately led the raven to lower his phone, placing it out of sight, making sure to lock it to ensure Yutaka wouldn’t know of his secret rendezvous tomorrow. Turning around to face his husband, Yuu put on an innocent smile on his face, eyes sweetly gazing up into Yutaka’s ones. The doctor was now donning a much more casual tee and boxer shorts, drying his hair out with a small towel he had lay on his shoulders. As Yutaka squeezed the ends of his hair dry, he took a seat against the bed, his smile meeting Yuu’s. The brunet didn’t seem to notice anything out of the ordinary, and was delighted to see that Yuu hadn’t gone on to sleep yet before him.  
   
“You’re not asleep yet,” Yutaka stated, inching himself closer to the raven. “Aren’t you tired? Food always makes you tired.”  
   
“Not really,” Yuu answered hurriedly, trying not to look too perplexed by Yutaka’s inching into his personal space. “But I guess… um… I’ll sleep soon.”  
   
“Well...” Yutaka was suddenly sounding coy, turning his head to look to the clock on the wall. “It’s only ten. But I do have to work two shifts tomorrow. You do remember me telling you I have to work through the night just for this week’s Thursday, right?”  
   
That meant Yutaka wouldn’t be home the entire day tomorrow. _Perfect_. “Ah, yeah, I do remember,” Yuu nodded, not wanting Yutaka to sense something was amiss.  
   
“I won’t be home in time for dinner,” Yutaka added, regretfully, his eyes darkening with guilt. “I’m really sorry about that. I’ll try to come home as soon as I can, but I’ll probably only end my shift around two in the morning.”  
   
Yuu frowned at how the brunet saw a need to apologize. “Yutaka, it’s fine! Your work is important. I told you I’d understand.”  
   
Yutaka let out a sigh, then pulled himself closer to Yuu on the bed so he could lay a gentle kiss atop Yuu’s forehead, his arms sliding down to Yuu’s waist. Yuu let the brunet embrace him closely without a complaint, knowing they were married, and that such intimate behavior was to be expected. Yuu was reasonable enough to know how he should and should not act as someone else’s husband; it’d be awful if Yuu rejected Yutaka’s affectionate advances simply because his heart still belonged to another man.  
   
“I’m the luckiest man in the world to have you,” Yutaka whispered, his breaths airing softly against Yuu’s skin. Yuu fluttered his eyes up worrisomely to the brunet, his heart stricken in his chest. Yutaka always treated him so sweetly, and he didn’t ever deserve this treatment from the raven… It wasn’t fair. Yuu shouldn’t have begun seeing anyone else on the side once he promised Yutaka he’d be his. Yuu shouldn’t have started anything at all.  
   
“I’m sorry for all my mistakes,” Yuu replied in a low murmur, feeling Yutaka’s fingers thread up the raven’s hair. “You’re really so good to me. You really are. No one can deny that.”  
   
Yutaka’s lips widened into a thankful smile, happy that Yuu thought as such. “Yuu, I don’t want you apologizing anymore. You have nothing to apologize about.”  
   
Yuu uttered a soft sigh, knowing that the brunet was being contradictory. “But you’re always apologizing to me about every little thing.”  
   
Yutaka frowned. “That’s different. I’m supposed to be able to take care of you. And I promised you I’d try not to stay at work too late, or that I’d compromise our life together just because of my job. So when I can’t do that, it’s my responsibility to–” Yuu raised up a finger and pushed it to Yutaka’s lips, hushing him.  
   
“I don’t need to be taken care of,” Yuu chastised, though his heart still grew warm at the brunet’s words.  
   
“Maybe you don’t,” Yutaka teased, pulling Yuu close, and lowering his own face to level with Yuu’s one at the same time. “But I like doing so. So just let me… alright?”  
   
Yuu’s nose now was only an inch apart from the brunet’s, the surface of their lips almost touching. Yutaka smelled so different from Kouyou. With Kouyou, the blond was fond of using a specific type of rich, musky cologne that Yuu always found himself drowning in, and he’d always feel uneasy whenever he was nowhere near Kouyou’s familiar scent. With Yutaka, however, the cologne he wore was much lighter and more airy; or perhaps it’d been so frequently mixed with the hospital’s sanitized smell that it couldn’t be differentiated anymore. It wasn’t bad, though. It smelled clean, trustworthy, and most importantly, of Yutaka. Yuu never realized Yutaka had much of a scent, or bothered with colognes and things like that, but he found that it wasn’t too bad.  
   
Yuu felt himself being pushed back down against the pillows the second Yutaka’s lips descended unto his, bringing him into a hungry kiss, showing that the doctor had evidently been waiting all these while to ravage the raven. Yuu’s eyes flew to a hazy close as Yutaka’s tongue slipped in, exploring Yuu’s mouth in ways that came so naturally to the brunet, but so foreign to the raven. Yuu had never kissed Yutaka with anything more than a light peck on the lips, and the feeling of Yutaka’s warm organ inside of his mouth like this… felt odd. Odd, but not _that_ unwelcoming. Perhaps his body was used to such kisses from his husband; perhaps they’d kissed enough in this lifetime for Yuu not to feel so freaked out by it anymore. Their hands tangled up in each other’s hair, their fingers pulling lightly and weaving through each other’s strands, their kisses growing more aggressive and urgent as time went by.  
   
The raven let out a few suggestive moans – involuntarily – into the kiss as Yutaka claimed his tongue as his, dominating Yuu easily, strands of his head of hair tickling against Yuu’s jawline with every hurried movement of his. Yutaka wasn’t really so bad of a kisser; in fact, Yuu dare say he was… _good_ , and experienced enough, even if he seemed rather impatient. It wasn’t like Yuu had ever wondered how good of a kisser Yutaka would be, but if Yuu had to give an honest opinion now about it, he’d say Yutaka did a good job in riling up his lover.  
   
Then Yuu felt Yutaka press his lower body against the front of Yuu’s crotch, and the raven went limp like a dead fish.  
   
The man was hard. _Fuck_. Of course he was hard, what else was Yuu expecting? Did he expect Yutaka to kiss him so passionately like this and then pull away eventually and tell him ‘good night’? Yutaka loved him so much, it was plain to see; and _of_ _course_ the man was expecting Yuu to go all the way with him tonight, seeing as how they’d had a rather romantic night together, telling each other how much they’d cared for each other and how much they were sorry for all of their shortcomings. Yutaka was his husband. To want to make love to him was to be _expected_.  
   
And yet Yuu still couldn’t handle it.  
   
Yuu must have froze for a good solid five seconds before he pushed Yutaka right off him –  an action that required a great deal of strength for him to do so. _Fuck_ , those muscles on Yutaka weren’t for show. Yuu probably wouldn’t have managed it as easily if Yutaka hadn’t been so thrown off-guard, either, and _so_ immersed in the kiss. The doctor rolled over slowly to the far edge of the bed, complete shock engulfing him the very minute Yuu pushed him away.  
   
And then Yuu’s fingernails dug anxiously into the sheets beneath him, instantly knowing he’d fucked up. He’d ruined a good night for the both of them, all because he couldn’t withstand the thought of undressing himself before his _best friend,_ allowing Yutaka to take him deep into the night. But try as Yuu might, Yuu couldn’t bring himself to do it. Even the very thought repulsed him. Yutaka was definitely hot, and so, _so_ attractive, and Yuu would probably bang him in a heartbeat if he was single and available.  
   
But Yuu wasn’t. Yuu was still engaged to Takashima Kouyou, the love of his life, and he needed to return to Kouyou’s side as soon as possible. And in the meantime, Yuu couldn’t do anything that might possibly wound Kouyou’s feelings, like have sex with his best friend cum husband in this alternate universe.  
   
He couldn’t hurt Kouyou like this. Not ever.  
   
“I… um,” Yutaka’s words came out in a splutter, the rejection from Yuu coming as a huge blow to him. He had to collect himself and pull himself back into a sitting position on the bed, his hands at a sudden loss of what to do. There was more shock and confusion on his face than anything else, though those eventually gave way to feelings of hurt splashed right all over his eyes anyway.  
   
“Did I read your signs wrong? You were being so sweet to me tonight and… I thought… I thought,” Dear _god_ , the man looked traumatized. Yuu felt so bad, he didn’t know what to do with himself. He couldn’t just explain that he _wasn’t_ the Yuu that belonged with him, could he? “Yuu, I’m sorry if it felt like I was forcing you into anything. I just… You’re so different today. I thought you would have been in a mood…“  
   
“It’s not you,” Yuu blurted out, not knowing how else to salvage the situation. He wanted so badly to reach a hand out and tell Yutaka _everything_ , tell Yutaka that it was never his fault, tell Yutaka that he hadn’t been reading the signs wrong, tell Yutaka that he hadn’t done anything he wasn’t supposed to do. Yutaka had done everything he was supposed to do. Yutaka was the perfect husband, and Yuu wasn’t. Yuu could never be one, not for him, not now, and perhaps never. And Yuu was so, so sorry about that, but there was nothing he could do about his feelings, or his heart, and the feelings of longing for a very specific Takashima Kouyou. It always felt right with Kouyou, and no one else. And that was no one’s fault. It most certainly wasn’t Yutaka’s.  
   
“I thought we were fine,” Yutaka’s voice left him softly, and brokenhearted. He lowered his head down, keeping his gaze focused on his hands down below. Disappointment oozed out of the brunet, with his back hunched like that, his strong back suddenly looking so vulnerable and unwanted in front of Yuu.  
   
Yuu had never felt worse in his life.  
   
“Yutaka, _please_ –” The raven’s hand hesitated to touch him still, but Yuu eventually resolved to, not wanting to not be able to provide comfort when his supposed husband most needed it. Yutaka had a tendency to blame himself for not being what Yuu wanted in a lover, and Yuu knew that each time he pushed Yutaka away – both figuratively _and_ literally – the brunet was bound to begin questioning himself once more, wondering if he was good enough for the raven.  
   
“Yutaka, I’m sorry… You just caught me by surprise. That didn’t mean anything, _please_ , I’m really sorry I did that.”  
   
“That,” Yutaka’s head perked up a bit, hope kindling once more in his eyes. “That didn’t mean… anything?”  
   
_Fuck_ , Yutaka was going to give it another go if Yuu didn’t handle this conversation well. And as bad as Yuu felt about disappointing Yutaka like this, he couldn’t deal with having sex with him right now – if ever. Yuu was confident he wouldn’t be staying long enough for Yutaka to have a second go with him, though. In fact, it’d be _best_ if he was being woken up from this nightmare of a dream right now, but nothing was indicating to him that such a thing was currently happening. Yuu just had to do this the hard way.  
   
“Yutaka,” Yuu allowed some exhaustion to plague his voice. “Yutaka, _baby_ , it’s just been a long day today. I was thinking of getting some rest quick, actually…” The raven even made a big show out of it by stretching his arms up wide, accompanied by a big yawn that Yuu had to force out. Yuu employed the sweetest voice he could muster, hoping a little cute whine would let him off his husband’s hook. “I really want to stay up so badly, but like you said, food always makes me so sleepy… Plus, don’t you have two shifts to work through, tomorrow?”  
   
Yutaka’s spirits still appeared to be slightly dampened, seeing as how he wouldn’t be getting lucky with Yuu tonight; but he seemed to buy Yuu’s sleepy act and didn’t question his lover any further, simply nodding his head in answer.  
   
“You must be tired,” Yutaka sighed, patting the empty pillows before them. “It’s alright, babe. You’re right, I should get some sleep soon since I’ll working all day tomorrow.”  
   
Yuu bit his lip, glancing over to him with concern. “You’re… You’re not mad, are you?”  
   
Yutaka raised his gaze gently to the raven. “No, sweetheart, I’m not. Your health is my priority. If you’re feeling tired, you just let me know, alright? I want you to get as much rest as possible.”  
   
Yuu feigned a smile in return. “I’m really sorry, Yutaka… Let’s just go to sleep now, mmkay?”  
   
And as Yutaka nodded and tucked Yuu into bed, spooning Yuu from behind as they slept, no less; Yuu found it difficult to sleep when he was being held in another man’s arms, lying on another man’s bed, living in another man’s house. He’d spent every night the past two years always wounded up so tightly in Kouyou’s homely embrace that to _not_ be able to feel him, and smell him, felt all sorts of strange to Yuu.  
   
Yuu missed Kouyou so goddamn much.  
   
~  
   
Yutaka left the penthouse approximately seven in the morning, after having delivered a kiss to the raven’s forehead and informing him he’d made breakfast for him that could be retrieved from the kitchen counter downstairs. Yuu mostly moaned incoherently in reply, vaguely bading his husband goodbye, then went right back to sleep. The raven-haired only woke up a few hours later, still uncomfortable living in such a grand house that _wasn’t_ Kouyou’s, and washed himself up, before skipping his way down the stairs, grabbing some of that breakfast Yutaka had prepared for him. Yuu couldn’t believe Yutaka’s thoughtfulness; the man had two shifts to cover in a day and he still managed to bring himself to wake up early in time to make Yuu some food. Could Yuu ask for anything more?  
   
_Even_ Kouyou didn’t do such things for him – not that Yuu wanted him to, of course. Kouyou was busy enough as he was, and though Yuu had no doubt Kouyou loved preparing meals for Yuu, too, the lack of time due to the amount of work and responsibilities that the CEO had didn’t give him much opportunities to fiddle with the kitchen just to cook for Yuu. All of which was perfectly OK with Yuu. He didn’t want Kouyou to ever exhaust himself out to such a point, which was something that Yutaka looked to be doing. Yuu felt his stomach heave at the very thought, feeling _so_ bad for what happened last night. He never wanted to make Yutaka feel he wasn’t enough for the raven, but at the same time, it couldn’t be helped who his heart belonged to.  
   
Despite everything that had happened so far, there was something that Yuu had to look forward to today, though, and that brought a huge smile to his face. He would be seeing Kouyou again, after _so_ long. And Yuu knew that it might only have been a day or two, but the raven couldn’t stand not being with Kouyou for long, he really couldn’t. Kouyou knew him inside out, and every touch of his always soothed Yuu so much and made him feel so safe. Yuu wouldn’t trade Kouyou for anything, or anyone else in the world.  
   
Yuu hadn’t specified a time to him via text, so he guessed that dropping by anytime would be OK with him. After gobbling down his breakfast, Yuu was dreamily heading back up the stairs in a daze, preparing to dress up nicely to meet his lover. There weren’t much choices other than tight clothing of various colours, of course, and Yuu had to make do. He looked _pretty_ good in these clothes, anyway, if he had to say so himself – he definitely had taste in picking out the right type of clothing for himself, and it showed.  
   
Yuu allowed his shoulder-length hair to remain in a high ponytail, sweeping back most strands off his face. He’d gotten so used to wearing ponytails of late that he wasn’t too used to letting his hair down much anymore. He also made sure to accentuate his eyes with dark eyeliner, doing the bare minimum of make-up like he usually did, just to look more presentable when he saw the blond. Kouyou was going to ambush him in a kiss once he saw him, Yuu knew it. Kouyou wouldn’t do anything less. Kouyou loved him so much.  
   
By twelve noon, Yuu was out of the door. He called a cab, gave the driver Kouyou’s address, and waited patiently in the backseat of the car, his heart thudding excitedly inside of him as his face grew rejuvenated with thoughts of Kouyou. He was going to see him again. He wasn’t going to feel so alone anymore. And this Kouyou might not be _his_ Kouyou, but really, what was the difference? He’d always come back to Kouyou, no matter what universe they were in. They always found each other, regardless of the obstacles. People change, but their hearts didn’t. And right now, Yuu was on his way to the one heart that he knew would always beat for him.  
   
~  
   
When the cab headed into an unfamiliar part of town that Yuu hadn’t ever seen before, something began to feel horribly wrong to the raven-haired. He didn’t dare voice out his concerns as of yet, though, awaiting to see where his destination ultimately was.  
   
Then they stopped right outside a block of shabby-looking, run-down apartments, and Yuu knew right away he wasn’t where he was supposed to be. A quick check with the cab driver, as well as the road signages, proved to Yuu that he was _exactly_ where the address led him to be, and the raven knew he couldn’t do anything but to get out of the cab and locate the very apartment of… Kouyou’s? Why would Kouyou be living in such shackles? He had more than enough money to remain living in a penthouse. Had Kouyou since met into some financial troubles? Is he not a CEO anymore? What could have possibly happened?  
   
After paying the cab driver with some cash Yuu had found in his wallet (it appeared that Yutaka was very generous with the allowances he gave to Yuu), Yuu trudged on up to the block of apartments, a deep frown etched on his face with every step he took. There wasn’t even a single lift in sight, only stairs, but thankfully the address only pinpointed him to the second level. Yuu soon landed right before the door of the apartment he’d promised he would visit, and he found himself hesitating for about five minutes, wondering if he should just turn around and head back home. Had he gotten the wrong house? But it _had_ to be Kouyou. Yuu had to take a chance.  
   
After a couple of knocks on the door, Yuu heard a deafening crash of glass to the ground, before the sounds of feet shuffling towards the entrance met his ears. The raven grew perturbed by the noises, wondering if the man inside was alright.  
   
And then the door was pulled open, and Yuu finally lay his eyes on the man he’d been looking forward to seeing all morning.  
   
And it wasn’t Kouyou.  
   
“ _A…Akira_?!”  
   
There the vice-president stood, a large, almost-finished wine bottle in hand, with shaggy hair, unshaven, sporting an ungroomed beard and moustache, wearing a shirt with _very_ visible red wine stains over them, paired with dirty, ill-fitting trousers. Akira had _not_ aged well. If Yuu was twenty-eight, Akira must be… forty-one years of age, by now? Akira had always been attractive in his own right, and he’d always kept himself clean and proper and shaven and… _God_ , fuck. Akira definitely had potential to look _so_ much better if he had taken care of his health and body as he grew older. Now he easily resembled someone else’s dad. A drunk, alcoholic dad at that. Yuu felt his breakfast coming up his stomach, hardly able to process the sight before him.  
   
Yuu had been whoring around with his fiancé’s _best friend_?! And what the hell happened to Takanori, anyway? Wouldn’t Takanori beat Yuu’s ass for getting together with his lover, even if they had become exes? What the living _fuck_? And what the hell was Akira doing, living in such an awful house? The whole place reeked of alcohol, and dead insects, and a wooden, mustard-y smell. Yuu thought he was going to pass out.  
   
Akira didn’t seem to sense Yuu’s surprise, and just winked sleazily towards the raven, extending a hand out eagerly to grab at Yuu’s delicate wrist. Yuu had half a mind to pull away and sprint for his dear life away from this place, but a part of him _needed_ to know what was going on between him and Akira. There were so many questions, and Yuu needed to know everything right from the start.  
   
“You came, _princess_ ,” Akira slurred his words heavily, a chuckle leaving his lips. Yuu was fucking horrified. What happened to the charming, suave gentleman he had always known Akira to be? And why was Akira using the pet name that _only_ Kouyou used on him? Now that coffee-emoji-person had revealed himself to be Akira, Yuu now felt like an idiot for not having seen this coming in the first place. _Of course_ Akira would be coffee-emoji. Their first official meeting had been over a coffee date, back at that supermarket near Yuu and Yutaka’s old place, and Yuu never was too original with names. Yuu should have guessed this _way_ earlier.  
   
“Careful, I might have dropped a glass or two on my way to the door, ha-ha…” Akira made sure to warn Yuu as he entered his home, waving his hand lazily in the air, as if brushing the matter completely off his shoulders.  
   
Akira’s entire apartment was in a mess. It was small enough as it is, being only a two-room flat, with a living room, a kitchen, a bathroom and a bedroom all squeezed into a limited amount of space. The furniture lying around looked like they were at least a decade old, and the leather on his sofa had been clawed to pieces. Barely any light filtered in through the windows, for the older man kept his blinds firmly shut. Bottles of empty alcohol and beer were strewn all over the place, and the air reeked of a strong, pungent smell. Yuu could hardly stand being in the place, much less believe he often came over to have a quick fuck with Akira.  
   
Seriously? Of all people – _him_? Takanori’s boyfriend? Kouyou’s best friend? Was Yuu out of his mind?  
   
Yuu didn’t want to be too insulting, either, but Akira wasn’t looking _too_ desirable in his current alcoholic state. His life looked to be wrecked, and he obviously wasn’t doing too well for himself if he’d downgraded from his billion-dollar home to a measly two-room flat. Unless twenty-eight year old Yuu had a fetish for bearded drunkards, there was no way Yuu could see himself willingly coming here.  
   
Wait. Was Akira blackmailing him of some sort? Or was he coercing Yuu to do his bidding? Why the fuck else would Yuu be fucking around with him when Akira was _nothing_ like the Kouyou he so desperately loved?  
   
“Akira,” Yuu halted the older man in his tracks, his eyes surveying around the place with much dismay. Where the hell was Yuu’s best friend, and Akira’s lover? Takanori and Akira were always so in love, but looking at the current condition of Akira’s house, there was no way Takanori was living here with him as well. Takanori was way too high-maintenance for that. Besides, if they were still together, Akira wouldn’t be fucking around with Yuu. Akira wasn’t unfaithful like that.  
   
“Where’s Takanori?”  
   
Yuu’s very question thickened the air with tension he hadn’t known was there the moment it left his lips. Akira snapped his head back immediately, a fiery look in his eyes, a sudden change in the nonchalant, easygoing attitude he held back at the doorstep. Yuu knew right away that he’d stepped on some toes, and that Takanori was something he should have known not to bring up in this household.  
   
There was only one explanation – they had long broken up.  
   
“Why are you bringing up that skank again?” Akira snarled, tremors running down his hairy arms. “I thought you hated him. _We_ hate him. Fuck, just thinking about him makes me want to run out and punch some people on the streets. Fuck that lying ass of a cheater. I hope he gets run down by that new and shiny Mercedes he drives.”  
   
… _We_ hate him? Yuu’s mouth fell open at the declaration, having not expected _this_ in his reality. He hated… Takanori? But… they were best friends. And Takanori had been there for him every step of the way, whenever he needed help, whenever he needed support. Even if Takanori might get too much sometimes, he had a good heart, and he _always_ meant well. There was no way their friendship could have plunged down to such an extent.  
   
“Takanori cheated on you?” Yuu couldn’t even fathom that happening. Takanori wouldn’t do that to Akira. Akira was _perfect_ for him. Who else could he have chosen over Aki?  
   
“With who?”  
   
Akira narrowed his eyes to him, unable to understand where Yuu was getting at. “Babe, you lost your memory or something? You’re acting pretty weird today. With Kouyou, of course. _Your_ precious Takashima Kouyou. Once you became engaged to your doctor of a husband, Kouyou fell into deep depression, and Takanori became a shoulder to cry on. And then _bam_. Next thing you know, they’re having sex. A lot. And suddenly I’m not attractive to him anymore. Fuck that shit.”  
   
All blood immediately drained from Yuu’s face.  
   
Kouyou… _what_? Kouyou was now in a relationship with… _Takanori?_ How could Takanori do this to him? He knew how much Yuu loved Kouyou – Wait. _Wait_. They were in separate universes. The Yuu here didn’t love Kouyou enough to stay, and had obviously chosen Yutaka over him. Why did Yuu do that? Why the living _fuck_ did Yuu do that? Now he’d lost the love of his life, to his very best friend. All in one act of betrayal. And Yuu couldn’t do a damn thing about it.  
   
Yuu had to steady himself by placing a hand against the nearest wall, trying his hardest not to pass out at the news. Was it just him, or was it getting really stuffy in here? Yuu was finding it _so_ hard to breathe, and his legs were shaking so much he was having a hard time remaining standing. Akira seemed to notice this, even in his intoxicated state, and was quickly hobbling over, supporting the smaller raven-haired’s body with an arm. Yuu had to do his best not to cry.  
   
“You’re having one of those breakdowns over Kouyou again, aren’t you,” Akira said gruffly, sighing all at once. Apparently Yuu crying over Kouyou wasn’t new in this universe. Good to hear. “Yuu, _princess_ , forget about that asshole. You don’t need him. We don’t need them.”  
   
Yuu’s words came out all choked up, his throat having tightened up far too much for him to speak. “Why… do… you… call… me… _princess_?” That was Kouyou’s nickname for Yuu. It _belonged_ to Kouyou. Yuu belonged to Kouyou…  
   
“You said you liked it when I called you _princess_ ,” Akira muttered, rather inquisitively to the raven. “You forgot about that, babe? Hmm?” His arm travelled slightly higher around Yuu’s hips, up to his waist, something that Yuu noted in the back of his mind.  
   
Yuu hadn’t understood why he’d willingly enter Akira’s arms, but now he knew why. Akira was a replacement for Kouyou. He was the closest thing Yuu had to Kouyou. It was too easy to see now what Akira and Yuu were bonding over, and how they got to having an affair with each other from the start. Yuu was certain this wasn’t a full-blown affair, however. It felt more like they were using each other to get over their (true) other halves, even though this arrangement was clearly not working out for them.  
   
“C’mon, _princess_ , don’t be so upset,” Akira whispered, burying his head down the crook of Yuu’s neck from behind. “I’m here. I’ll make everything better. You don’t have to think about Kouyou anymore. Just think about me, babe. We always have so much fun together.”  
   
And then he was giving a tight slap to the back of Yuu’s ass, and Yuu flinched so hard in response he was sure he was going to puke this time. Akira’s two hands slid down to cup around Yuu’s round bottoms, squeezing them suggestively, whilst pressing his wine-stained lips to the side of Yuu’s neck, getting ready to nibble away at Yuu’s pale skin.  
   
Yuu didn’t let himself remain subjected to such humiliating treatment any longer. He turned around, aimed a hard slap across Akira’s face, then turned on his heels and left the apartment in a jiffy.  
   
He knew in an instant where he was heading to next.  
   
Kouyou’s goddamn office.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next update will probably be in the next few days as well :>some of you guessed the Takanori and Kouyou relationship even before this chapter! you guys are waaay too smart... and speculative.
> 
> but I bet no one guessed the Akira and Yuu affair :p lol, sorry, rich ex-vice president became a poor, peasant, bearded hobo! though I know he'd still be attractive to some of y'all ;) ~~I also know some of y'all were hoping for some Yuu and Yutaka smut, but if Yuu did that it'd be an act of betrayal~~
> 
> let me know what you guys think, as usual <3


	60. the Office X

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter, Takanori looks like this: [reference photo 1](http://images4.fanpop.com/image/photos/18500000/ruki-the-gazette-18599676-500-657.jpg) | [reference photo 2](http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_L0Jga3glmPw/TPgG17LqdSI/AAAAAAAAAFw/A5_aa7NLetU/s1600/Ruki_PLEDGE_ANI.jpg) | [reference photo 3](http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_cAMHPfWAf9k/TQcmBF3CN3I/AAAAAAAACxg/vi5fCsMgGh8/s1600/neo+gene+yr+book+2010+Ruki.jpg)

Yuu still couldn’t believe this was happening.  
   
In the midst of his shock and anger, he hadn’t any time to re-route back home for a change of clothes first before heading over to Kouyou’s office. On hindsight, he should have brought along an emergency blazer, especially when he would be visiting such a large, corporate office building, but he hadn’t foreseen this visit beforehand. There was a part of him that refused to acknowledge everything that was happening. It couldn’t be real; Kouyou’s heart couldn’t belong to another, now. Kouyou couldn’t do this to him, no matter which lifetime they were in. Kouyou and him always had a cliché kind of love, and Yuu might be naïve for believing in this, but he wanted to firmly believe that their hearts were made for each other. Right from the beginning, right to the end of time. They didn’t belong with anyone else. It was always Kouyou and Yuu, and nothing else.  
   
The office building had hardly changed its look in these five years. And for some odd reason, Yuu’s name was registered under the building’s visitors system, which enabled him easy access to the lifts. The raven hardly had time to question it. He was too busy fuming, heartbroken, tapping his feet impatiently whilst waiting for the next available elevator. In the meantime, he noticed several pairs of curious eyes landing on him from various office employees standing nearby, and it was only then that Yuu _truly_ realized how out of place, and scandalously dressed he was. Did he look like a hooker to them? Yuu promptly turned his head and flashed a flirtatiously confident smile to all his onlookers, which led to many of them avoiding his gaze immediately. Funny – if this was twenty-three years old Yuu, the raven-haired would have thought twice before doing something so bold like that. Perhaps he really did grow much more sluttier with age. Or, well, more self-assured and poised, at least. Yuu felt… _fearless_.  
   
The elevator ride felt like an eternity. Yuu could still remember taking the exact same lift with Kouyou to work like it was yesterday, on the day that would later escalate into that unnecessary fight of theirs. Yuu had loathed the idea of returning home with Kouyou, unable to stand how hurtful he had carelessly acted just because of his worries about his _career_. Now Yuu would do anything to be back home with him again, sleeping in his rightful lover’s arms instead of Yutaka’s.  
   
Once the elevator opened to Kouyou’s office, Yuu felt a sense of déjà vu overwhelm him. He could just walk up to that desk by the reception, take a seat, and begin his secretarial work like he’d been doing so for the past two months now. And maybe if he just pretended that everything was back to normal, everything _would_ be. Things wouldn’t have to be this way.  
   
Yuu knew he couldn’t, though. His main priority here was to find Kouyou as soon as possible, and get this mess sorted straight. As Yuu sauntered into the office, he noticed Chiaki’s desk empty. Weird. Where was Kouyou’s secretary? Yuu rarely saw her absent from work; the woman was very much dedicated to all aspects of her job. Maybe she was out for a lunch break. Or was she settling some matters in the departments downstairs?  
   
Yuu didn’t see any reason for him to take a seat and wait. If he was lucky enough, Kouyou _should_ be in his office. Kouyou _would_ be waiting for him. And when Kouyou saw him again, nothing else would matter. Yuu refused to believe any otherwise. And Yuu knew that his hopeless optimism had failed him many times before, and things always seemed to turn out the opposite of what he’d hoped, but it was in Yuu’s nature to never give up his confidence and faith in the things – and people – he loved. Kouyou could let him down a million times, and Yuu would still come crawling back with a hopeful heart and an unwavering strength to regain all that was lost. Yuu would help Kouyou see things straight. Yuu always did.  
   
But Yuu discounted the fact that fate always had a funny way of dealing with things. Fate _always_ wanted to fuck with Yuu. Because as Yuu took eager steps towards Kouyou’s office, the door quickly swung open, and a head of brunet hair gradually popped out. Yuu stopped in his steps, his heart thudding loudly in his ears as his eyes fell down upon the man that soon revealed himself from behind the door. His best friend.  
   
Takanori had never been more fancily dressed. He’d always been passionate about fashion, however the brunet had always made do with rather affordable fashion, only splurging on the occasional brands when the pieces were too attractive to resist. In this universe, twenty-eight year old Takanori was a mirror image of what Yuu thought a male version of Christine would have looked like. Takanori’s coffee brown hair had been slightly permed at the ends, giving him just the right amount of volume to his hair. Half his hair was tucked behind a ear of his, revealing an expensive, bedazzling earring in the shape of a cross. There was a stoic, passive look on Takanori’s face, his eyes having been lined with thick black eyeliner that contrasted beautifully with the fairness of his skin. Multiple necklaces hung lowly down his neck, dressing up the rich black leather jacket he was wearing nicely. Takanori looked unnecessarily posh, well groomed, and sophisticated with a dash of charm.  
   
The usual fire and exuberance in his eyes that Yuu was used to seeing in him had blown out. It wasn’t there anymore, and instead, was replaced with a murky, distant black. And as his gaze met Yuu’s, those same eyes were soon turning into slits, giving clear indication that he wasn’t too happy to see Yuu here. Yuu didn’t have to hear a single word from him to know he was unwelcomed by his best friend.  
   
Takanori only began speaking once he’d closed the office door behind him in one swift movement, almost like he was afraid of letting the man inside know of Yuu’s arrival.  
   
“What are _you_ doing here?” Takanori’s tone of voice was vile. Yuu wondered what he’d done to incur such foulness. “You have no business coming here.”  
   
Yuu couldn’t bring himself to be harsh with his best friend. “I’m here to visit Kouyou,” the raven began, trying to sound as civil as possible. “Just a quick chat. Nothing more.” Why was Takanori looking so wary of Yuu, like Yuu was out here to commit a crime? Did he think Yuu was out here to steal his man? As true as that was, though, Kouyou was _not_ Takanori’s ‘man’. And the only way Takanori would be able to get Kouyou was over Yuu’s own dead body.  
   
“He’s busy,” Takanori barked, taking an intimidating step forward. Yuu wondered if Takanori thought that was _enough_ to make Yuu back off. Because it wasn’t. Yuu was here on a mission, and he wasn’t going to leave without gaining access to the blond.  
   
“He can spare five minutes for a chat,” Yuu frowned, moving a step forth himself. Takanori was kidding no one here, especially not Yuu. The raven wasn’t going to give up when it came to the one love of his life.  
   
“Why won’t you ever give up, Yuu? You keep forgetting that you’re married now, don’t you? Do you think Yutaka would be happy to hear about you visiting Kouyou again?”  
   
_Again_? Yuu’s forehead creased up, not understanding the reference. He suddenly remembered how Yutaka had reacted when he spoke of being with Kouyou in his office, and quickly made the connection. He’d been making frequent visits to Kouyou before this, for whatever reason it was – he’d find out when he actually spoke to the blond later. For now, it was obvious to him that Takanori and Yutaka both detested the idea of Yuu and Kouyou keeping in contact, though it wasn’t too hard to guess the reason why. They were their respective lovers, and they didn’t want Yuu and Kouyou to have any lingering feelings with each other, or have anything to do with each other. But why go to such lengths to keep them apart if all they did was keep returning to each other’s arms? Yuu and Kouyou never felt right being apart.  
   
“Yuu, you made a decision five years ago,” Takanori snapped, sneering right into his face. “Stick to it, and stop being such a homewrecker. Not only to others, but yourself. Why don’t you realize you keep hurting everyone when you do things like this? Don’t you want a family with Yutaka, someday?”  
   
“That’s frankly none of your business,” Yuu answered right back, irritation quickly building up in his eyes. He still loved Takanori deeply, yes, but _god_ , twenty-eight year old Takanori was a big pain in the ass. And so, _so_ rude. He missed the fun, mischievous Takanori he was used to seeing at lunch everyday, always gossiping and giggling with him over some ludicrous gossip he’d found out in the office. He had always taken the best friend he had for granted, and to have him suddenly vanish like this and morph into a complete, heartless stranger shook him just a bit. Yuu missed the old Takanori he knew _so_ much.  
   
“I wonder how you sleep well at night,” Takanori snorted, rolling his eyes. “Oh, right, I forgot. You do that by sleeping with everyone in your sight. How’s Akira doing? Good?”  
   
Yuu’s eyes flamed up in surprise. How did Takanori know about Akira? The brunet knew they’d been sleeping together? Was Takanori particularly bitter about this? Because then, it’d actually explain partially why Takanori was so hateful of the raven. And Yuu never meant to hurt Takanori like this, he really didn’t. Yuu had never held any romantic feelings towards Akira, and he didn’t want Takanori to think any otherwise.  
   
“Taka, look, I still don’t know how Akira and I happened, but I didn’t mean to start this entire thing with Akira and I never wanted it–”  
   
“ _Right_ , like how you never meant to start anything with Kouyou. Give up, Yuu. He’s mine now, and we’re very happy with each other, and you need to accept that your chance came and went, and it’s all over now. You need to go back to pre-school and learn what the words ‘mine’ and ‘not yours’ mean. I got the perfect man, and he’s not yours. Get the hell lost from this office.”  
   
Yuu was beginning to lose all hope of ever gaining entry past that door into Kouyou’s office, since Takanori didn’t look like he was about to budge anytime to allow Yuu to do so – and Yuu knew that someone with Takanori’s temperament was perfectly capable of standing at the door all day in a bid to drive Yuu off – but then the door was pushed slightly open, and Yuu heard the one voice he’d been meaning to hear this whole time. Deep, masculine, stern, and above it all – _his_.  
   
“Takanori, why are you still standing here?”  
   
Takanori then quickly shuffled aside at the sound of Kouyou’s voice, making enough room for the blond to be able to remove himself from behind the door. Yuu’s eyes immediately shot up to rest upon Kouyou’s profile. Kouyou came into Yuu’s full view looking exactly like the man he’d just seen two days ago. He should be forty-three now, yes, but his dark eyes still remained so dazzling, and his jaw, so chiseled. He kept himself in such a good shape it looked like he’d barely aged; his suit still fit his built bod perfectly, and he was attired no less than how a proper president of large corporation should look like.  
   
His hair had been kept blond, and short, and he was still so, _so_ handsome. Yuu wanted so badly to run right into his arms and sob into his chest right then and there, wanting to take in all of his scent, wanting Kouyou to call him his babydoll and tell him not to worry about anything else, that Kouyou would always take care of it for him. But Yuu couldn’t. Takanori stood in between them, and the brunet had moved to slip into a position by Kouyou’s side, looking like the CEO’s perfect other half.  
   
“Kouyou,” Yuu’s lips were calling of their own accord, leaving him in a mere, desperation-filled whisper. Kouyou’s eyes were struck, full of shock at the sight of Yuu standing before him here, and was that – was that a glimmer of hope Yuu saw stirring up in the blond’s dark, enigmatic eyes?  
   
“I told him to leave,” Takanori grunted, sending a glare to the raven-haired. “He won’t leave. I can call security, if you want.”  
   
“No.” Kouyou cut Takanori short, as if irked Takanori had said as such to Yuu, then gestured for the brunet to leave himself. “Takanori, you still have to take care of those things I handed over to you, right?”  
   
Takanori’s face went glum. “I do.”  
   
_What the hell? Don’t tell me…_ “Kouyou, Taka’s your _secretary_?!” Yuu asked, his mouth widely gawking at the brunet. What kind of insult was this? Yuu was supposed to be _his_ secretary! Not only did Takanori steal his man, Takanori also stole his… job?! No one could do a better job at being Kouyou’s secretary than Yuu. Well, other than Chiaki. But other than her, _no one else_. No way he was letting Takanori have that job. Kouyou was _his_ future husband.  
   
“Taka, I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me, OK?” Kouyou smiled tightly to his present lover, waving him off. Takanori was disgruntled to be told to leave the two alone, but he complied with Kouyou’s instructions, not wanting to get on Kouyou’s bad side.  
   
“Phone me if you need anything,” Takanori hissed, still darting dubious glances to Yuu. “Don’t take too long with _him_.”  
   
It took all of Yuu to have to resist spouting angry comebacks to the brunet. He waited until Takanori finally passed them both, feet trudging on reluctantly back to his workspace. Yuu watched his back with his heart weighing heavily in his chest, wondering what had possibly gone wrong in this universe for them to have be on such revolting terms with each other.  
   
Then – without much warning – Kouyou was grabbing roughly at Yuu’s wrist, encircling a firm grip around the raven-haired’s hand, and pulling him forth into the office behind them. Yuu didn’t have any time to react, not until the office door was slammed back close behind him, not until Kouyou had pushed Yuu back up against the door, towering over him with his body, a pair of interrogative eyes staring right back into Yuu’s deer-like ones.  
   
“Why are you here?” Kouyou questioned, keeping his voice low and commanding, his grip on Yuu unhesitating and resolute. Yuu couldn’t wriggle himself out of Kouyou’s grasp if he wanted to; the man was adamant on not letting Yuu out of his sight. Yuu didn’t want to move at all, though. Not when Kouyou was finally standing before him again, his attention finally directed solely to him. Not when Kouyou was holding him like this, so protectively, so possessively, like if he let go, Yuu would just disappear. Not when Kouyou looked like he wanted so much for Yuu to stay.  
   
Yuu didn’t do anything else, other than the one thing he’d wanted to do since the very moment he saw him. He leaned forward and wrapped his arms weakly around the taller man, as tightly as he could, hiding his face in the depths of Kouyou’s thick chest. Kouyou still smelled just like what he’d remembered. That homely, musky scent was still there. Oh, _god_ , Kouyou smelled like home. And Yuu’s home had always been one person – Kouyou. And he was finally back here, in Yuu’s arms.  
   
“I missed you so much,” Yuu’s voice cracked, giving way to the huge relief and happiness that was overwhelming him. “Kouyou, I thought I’d lost you. But you’re still here. I found you. I knew I would find my way back to you.”  
   
Kouyou didn’t immediately return the embrace. He remained stiff, actually, for the first few seconds or so, having not expected such an intense reaction from the raven-haired. But his heart eventually won out and he found his hand loosening its sick grip on Yuu’s wrist, and instead, raising up to clutch Yuu tightly as well, his hands finding their way in the raven’s hair, pressing Yuu as close to him as possible. Kouyou breathed in the smell of Yuu’s strawberry-scented hair, keeping his eyelids shut as he did so, basking in the comfort it brought to him. It only proved one thing.  
   
_Kouyou still loved him._ And Yuu knew it. Kouyou would never have forsaken him for any other. Yuu trusted his gut instinct, and he knew Kouyou would never toss him aside without good reason like this. And even if with good reason, the man could never bring himself to stay mad at Yuu for too long. Kouyou always gave in. Yuu would always have an effect on him.  
   
“It’s been five months,” Kouyou’s words came out in a soft murmur, in disbelief of the love and affection Yuu was currently bestowing upon him. “Yuu, you said you wanted to end this...”  
   
_“I just don’t want you seeing him again, okay? You promised me you wouldn’t, anymore. Remember your promise to me five months ago?”_  
   
Yuu went rigid at that mention. Five months. That was what Yutaka had been talking about to him, back in the hospital. Yuu had supposedly made a promise to Yutaka five months ago, and Yuu had no idea what it was. It definitely had something to do with Kouyou, this much Yuu had guessed, but he didn’t know the rest of the details.  
   
But now he think he knew.  
   
“We… We were having an affair,” Yuu’s fingers dug into Kouyou’s back at the revelation. Twenty-eight year old Yuu had gone back to Kouyou, after all, even after all this time. Twenty-eight year old Yuu hadn’t been able to control his heart’s desires, and he’d given in. Twenty-eight year old Yuu had regretted the decision he made five years ago, and he’d wanted to gain back the opportunity he lost back then. And Kouyou let him. Kouyou gave it to him, despite having already gotten attached to Takanori by that point. They’d been cheating on their own other halves just for a chance to be together, just for their own selfish wants, just for a chance to be happy again. But could they really be blamed? They had always belonged together. And because of Yuu’s mistake to get wedded to a man he hadn’t even loved, they now had more hurdles than before when it came to re-uniting with each other.  
   
But nothing stopped like them, as always. Nothing ever did.  
   
“You said you couldn’t do this to Yutaka anymore,” Kouyou lowered his eyes, despair filling his voice. Yuu hugged Kouyou tighter at the dejection of his voice, his heart breaking at the thought of having wounded Kouyou so badly like this. “You didn’t want us to be unfaithful anymore, you said it wasn’t fair to everyone else...”  
   
It wasn’t fair to anyone else? Funny how twenty-eight year old Yuu ultimately relapsed and sought comfort in Akira’s arms instead. Twenty-eight year old Yuu must have thought that if it wasn’t Kouyou, it wouldn’t technically be considered a betrayal, _right_? Yuu must have missed the feeling of the blond so much that he ended up seeking Akira out instead, since it made him feel better about not cheating on Yutaka with Kouyou himself; but his arrangement with Akira was still enough to make him feel close to the blond. _Man_ , twenty-eight year old Yuu was fucked up.  
   
And all because of this one man.  
   
“You don’t love Takanori, do you?” Yuu asked quietly, pulling back from the embrace, anguished eyes gazing up to Kouyou’s ones. “You can’t love him. You love me… You said you’d only ever love me in this lifetime.”  
   
Kouyou looked as though he wanted to break into a humourous laugh, even if his eyes were gradually overcome with pain, like Yuu’s words weren’t something new that he hadn’t heard before. Yuu was disconcerted by such a reaction. What had happened between them to elicit such resignedness?  
   
“And so what if I told you I still loved you? Is it going to change anything between us? I can’t keep doing this with you, Yuu, I can’t keep going on and off with you. I can’t make my heart emotionally available whenever you feel like you want me back again, and I can’t have my heart broken whenever you suddenly regain a conscience and want to return to Yutaka. My heart’s not versatile like that. I’m not strong enough to withstand anything more. Because I’d already convinced myself that you won’t be returning for good, this time, five months ago, I’d already told my heart to stop hoping you’ll come back.  
   
And now you’re back. And it’s not fair to my heart, at all, like this. It really isn’t. I can’t keep living my whole life waiting for you to come back, and leave, in bursts. My heart’s going to give out one day. I wish I could hold on longer, just for you, I really could. And I was ready to stay, just for you, five months ago. But now you’re looking at a man who’s been broken enough by you to know it’s not good enough for him. It’s not good for Takanori, too. It’s not good for anyone around us.”  
   
Yuu heard the hopelessness, and the forlornness, and the five months worth of heartbrokenness, and the _I’ll love you forever_ s and the _but you’re tearing me apart_ s. Yuu heard every moment of happiness Kouyou had thought to be worth staying for, Yuu heard the neverending love Kouyou would always harbor for him, Yuu heard the amount of times Kouyou had to resign to the fact that Yuu was never coming back, and then he heard the end.  
   
Kouyou was right. Neither of them deserved this. And it turned out that _everyone_ was getting hurt by Yuu’s actions in all of this mess, except for the very raven-haired himself. How could twenty-eight year old Yuu possibly be so unfeeling, unsympathetic, and self-serving in his desires? No wonder Takanori was so full of contempt for him. Yuu would hate himself, too.  
   
How could he have landed himself in such a messy situation, all just to keep himself happy? Why couldn’t the past Yuu do anything right in this life? And Yuu now knew that the right thing to do was to leave, and return back home, and pretend like he’d never visited Kouyou’s office to find out such heartbreaking news, and give up all ideas of ever re-uniting with the blond.  
   
But twenty-three year old Yuu shouldn’t have to pay for for twenty-eight year old Yuu’s mistakes, did he? Twenty-three year old Yuu was the one who had always chosen Kouyou. Twenty-three year old Yuu deserved to be with the blond.  
   
“I’m sorry, I still love you,” Yuu blinked back the tears that had unknowingly crept up to his lashes, hating how miserable the older man looked. He never wanted to cause Kouyou any pain, and he didn’t know how to take away any of it from the CEO. Kouyou meant everything to him, and Yuu always wanted to be a source of happiness for him, never anything else. “I don’t know how I’m going to be without you. I can’t be happy with Yutaka, I _don’t_ know how to be happy with Yutaka. I wish I knew how to, but I can’t. I tried, believe me, I did. But it’s so foreign to sleep in his arms, in his bed, and it’s hard to let him touch me in the ways you do for me. He’ll never be you.”  
   
Kouyou’s hardened gaze gradually softened, not liking it either to see the raven-haired in such pain. “But you chose him.”  
   
A lone tear seeped out from the corner of Yuu’s eye and trickled down the side of his face, leaving in its wake a wet trail. “The Yuu now chooses you.”  
   
Kouyou shut his eyes, attempting to calm his heart down at the words he’d just heard. “Yuu… please don’t do this. Please don’t say these things and just leave me again. Alright? I’m tired, _god_ , I’m so exhausted. I really can’t take anymore of this. Please, Yuu. I don’t think you should be here.”  
   
Was he… Was he trying to drive Yuu away? This wasn’t fair to him, who had done nothing to warrant being pushed away like this. _This wasn’t fair_.  
   
“But I,” Yuu felt his heart drop to the floor, more tears dripping and clattering down both cheeks this time. This couldn’t be happening. Kouyou couldn’t have gotten tired of him. Yuu _needed_ Kouyou, like air, to breathe. “But I,” And Yuu knew that this wasn’t _his_ Kouyou, this wasn’t the Kouyou that he’d last seen in the office, but it felt all the same to him. _This_ Kouyou loved him, and he felt so real, and he smelled the same, and he felt so right holding him. But he didn’t seem to want Yuu anymore, and this fact was burning a large hole in his chest. Yuu found himself helpless, unable to utter anything else but the heartfelt truth. “But I… I love you.”  
   
“Yuu, babydoll...” Kouyou’s face fell when he witnessed how badly the raven-haired was crying. Yuu wasn’t making any noises whatsoever; he just allowed the silent tears to run, he just allowed his heart to break deafeningly in the silence between them. And so Kouyou did the only thing he knew how to do. He bent his head over, and kissed Yuu ever so lovingly against his hair, calming the raven as gently as he possibly could, murmuring sweet nothings into his ear. Yuu cried harder. It was _his_ Kouyou, alright.  
   
Kouyou never changed.  
   
“Stop crying, alright? I’m still here, you know how much it pains me to see you like this, please, _princess_ , don’t cry over me like this. You know I never meant to hurt you, babydoll, you’re my everything…” Kouyou leaned his lips into Yuu’s hair, his endless whispers lulling Yuu’s tears into oblivion like it was pure magic.  
   
Yuu’s heart felt lighter in his chest, now that he knew Kouyou still cared for him enough to handle him so preciously. He was back to calling him his _princess_ and _babydoll_ , and that was all Yuu needed to hear to feel okay again.  
   
“I love you so much, and I can’t lose you just like this,” Yuu’s hands reached up to grip tightly at Kouyou’s shirt, fluttering his tear-filled eyes up to lock gazes with Kouyou. Even after all these while, Yuu still felt like a child at heart when it came to being consoled by Kouyou like this. The older man always knew all the right things to do that would perk Yuu’s spirits up again. “Kouyou, please, I can’t do this without you. I’m so confused, about everything that’s happening around me, and I can’t go home today to sleep again in Yutaka’s bed without knowing I’ll be back again in your arms again. I feel so alone, and I didn’t ask for any of this. _Please_. Please don’t leave me alone. I’m begging you. Please don’t drive me away.”  
   
Kouyou looked conflicted. The man looked as though he were battling internally with himself, trying to come to a decision as to whether he could handle having Yuu back in his life again.  
   
“Why is it that everytime I see you crying over me, I can’t do anything else but kiss you?” Kouyou hoarsely whispered, sounding rather defeated. His hands slipped down from the raven’s hair to grab at both sides of Yuu’s jaw, holding his princess close to him.  
   
Yuu hated how relieved he was to hear that, knowing that Kouyou must be struggling _so_ much in turmoil from within to have to come to decisions like this. Yuu knew he was being selfish for wanting to regain Kouyou’s love above everything else, but he really couldn’t deal not having it, he couldn’t.  
   
“Because you love me, and that’s how love works,” Yuu murmured, the words coming out naturally to him. And perhaps he was even beginning to sound manipulative, but he knew his intention wasn’t that. He was doing it all in the name of love, and he only wanted his lover back by his side. “And no one’s going to change that. No Yutaka, no Takanori…. None of them.”  
   
“You know I only ever chose Takanori because he’s the closest thing I can have that reminds me of you,” Kouyou confessed, truthfully. “You know that, Yuu. You know I love you.”  
   
Yuu felt the corners of his lips tug up gently at the admission. “You… love me?”  
   
“I love you,” Kouyou answered back, and still with a firm grip on Yuu’s jaw, pulled him just a tad bit closer so Kouyou could bring him into a soft kiss. Yuu thought he would melt. He sunk against Kouyou’s fingertips, kissing the older man ever so gently, the last remnants of his tears rolling down his wet cheeks as he did so. It was perfect. Kouyou felt perfect. They kissed without tongue, but with the right amount of sweetness and love that it settled both their hearts back down and made the moment feel so, _so_ right. Yuu’s heart had never leapt so hard in his chest. Yuu was finally finding his place in the world again, and it was right next to him.  
   
Kouyou pulled away only to speak, dropping his voice to a hushed whisper. “It’s been a little too long… Takanori will get suspicious. I have to get back to work, love, but I want to see you again. Tonight. At our usual place. Will you come?”  
   
Yuu at first was startled by how secretive Kouyou was acting, then realized it all came as a package with this whole affair thing. It still didn’t sit right with Yuu’s conscience, however the raven knew they had no choice. They couldn’t be together any otherwise.  
   
“What usual place?” Yuu mouthed, baffled at the idea. Kouyou simply dug a hand down into the pocket of his pants and pulled his wallet out, quickly locating a namecard that he was passing over to Yuu.  
   
“This club. I’ll make our usual reservation, just tell the bouncer you’re here under my name,” Kouyou instructed. Yuu looked down to the namecard he now had in hand – one that read in huge block letters ‘RENDEZVOUS’ and an address written at the bottom. What an aptly titled club, Yuu thought. Was this the place for illegitimate hook-ups or what?  
   
“Yutaka will be back around two in the morning,” Yuu dutifully informed.  
   
“Meet me at eight, princess,” Kouyou muttered, planting a kiss softly against Yuu’s cheek. “I won’t leave until you come.”  
   
Yuu mustered up another small smile. “Is that… Is that a threat?”  
   
“It might be,” Kouyou let loose a low chuckle, eyes brimming with non-stop happiness and love as he gazed down at Yuu’s face.  
   
Yuu’s smile widened. “How is it that in all universes, you’re still the sweetest, most charming, most irresistible gentleman I’ve ever known.”  
   
Kouyou kept his eyes focused on Yuu’s ones, never leaving his sight.  
   
“Maybe because home has never been a place, it’s a person. And you… you are my home.”  
   
Yuu’s smile dissipated immediately at his words, abruptly being reminded of the words he had said to Kouyou the very night Kouyou had proposed to him. But Kouyou couldn’t ever have known that – not in this universe, not when Kouyou never had a chance to spend his 36th birthday with Yuu, not when Yuu never got to say a tearful, happy ‘ _yes_ ’, not when they never got be engaged, and become each other’s fiancés. There was no way Kouyou could have known this _one_ line that they’d both uttered to other on the night of Kouyou’s proposal, but the very fact that he was saying it right now to the raven-haired meant something: it didn’t matter where they were. They had, and would always be, each other’s home.  
   
Kouyou never even got to propose.  
   
Yuu had to fight back the tears that kept coming back up.  
   
“And you are mine,” Yuu held his smile as together as he possibly could, a throbbing heartache plaguing him from within, wishing so badly things could return to the way they originally were, where Yuu could have been happy, where Kouyou could have been happy, where Akira and Takanori had never broken up, where Yuu had never wished for things to go any other way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...shitstorm part IV. 
> 
> the ending killed me, inside, just a little. (even if I felt a sense of accomplishment writing it.) I already feel a lot of angry, devastated glares coming onto me...... I'm going to make my escape right about now.
> 
> PS: I hope the timeline of events that's happened isn't too confusing for anyone (what with the five months ago affair, Akira affair happening afterwards, etc. ask me if you're unsure about anything!)
> 
> share your thoughts as usual, I love reading them <3 like always, I'll try my best to update in the next few days!


	61. the Office XI

Rendezvous turned out to be a highly exclusive night club, one that was situated deep into town, and only allowed people with invitations to be let in. Visitors were normally recognized by their faces, and plenty who passed through the doors embodied such stylishness and class that Yuu didn’t even have to speculate how high up the social ladder they were ranked on. The club was clearly meant for VIPs, celebrities and elites of the food chain; people with the likes of Kouyou. The minute Yuu was dropped off the doorstep of the club by an old-looking cab, the raven regretted not turning up in something more appropriate like a limousine instead – though doing so might draw even more unnecessary attention to him. Yuu scrapped that idea as soon as it entered his head.  
   
Giving his name to the bouncer wasn’t _that_ necessary as he thought it would be. The bouncers around the club seemed to have been trained to identify faces off the bat, and Yuu was definitely one face they recognized as a regular visitor to the club. Yuu didn’t know what to feel about that. Was this really his and Kouyou’s usual spot? How regularly did they come here before? Was this the only place they could hang out and be together without any disturbance or anyone noticing them? It felt almost… sad.  
   
As Yuu entered the club, the intermingled smells of smoke and sweat instantly assaulted his nostrils as he inhaled them in. The whole place was dark, with the exception of the dimmed flashing pink and purple lights they had put on, illuminating unfamiliar faces and heads of hair all around, while others disappeared into the contrasting darkness.  
   
He was surprised to see so many people already hanging around the club when it was so early into the night, but it made sense to him that high-profile guests like them would rather retreat to exclusive places like this with so much time on their hands, and probably plenty of underlings to do their dirty work for them. Pushing himself past pulsating throngs already crowding the dance floor, Yuu met with several unwanted gazes from men that left him squirming uncomfortably. Where was Kouyou? How was Yuu going to find him like this? Kouyou didn’t even leave a single clue as to how to find him amongst this crowd.  
   
Then Yuu felt a hand tug at his arm, and the raven was quickly turning around to meet the intruder, coming face-to-face with a waiter of sorts.  
   
“Takashima’s waiting for you,” the waiter informed, bowing his head just slightly to the raven. “Follow me.”  
   
Right. Kouyou had mentioned making a reservation of sorts. Did they have their own private room that Kouyou usually reserved, or what? Without a single word, Yuu compliantly followed the waiter around, making their way out of the dance floor and heading straight towards the deep end of the club instead. After turning several corners, Yuu was amazed to find a whole corridor full of enclosed private rooms; their doors covered with classy, red curtains, the dead silence echoing throughout the place certainly showing that the walls were sound-proof here.  
   
_Now_ the name Rendezvous made sense.  
   
The waiter stopped short in front of one of those rooms, knocking twice respectfully against the door before pushing it slightly open. After announcing a rather subservient “he’s here” to the guest inside, the waiter excused himself and took a step back, gesturing for Yuu to enter the room as he did so.  
   
So Yuu did.  
   
Pushing open the door, Yuu found himself stepping forth into a rather spacious room, with a large, tall ceiling that bore an unlit chandelier and ceiling rose. The lights were just slightly brighter than what it’d been like outside, but still dim enough to give off a dingy night-club feel. The walls were richly patterned, and the luxurious, red velvety long sofa, which stretched along and aligned with most of the room’s length, had bold-coloured cushions like gold and black covering it. There was a pool table just to the side of the room, and a mini-bar situated right opposite it, where it was possible for guests to pour and mix their own drinks from the fine selection of alcohol and wine available on the shelves by the wall.  
   
Kouyou remained seated in the middle of the elongated sofa, a small glass of wine in hand. He had his legs placed up top the glass coffee table in front of him, casually taking small sips from his wine glass as his eyes travelled to meet Yuu’s ones at the door. Then his somber face features melted away into a relieved smile once he caught sight of the raven-haired, happy that Yuu had decided to turn up, having spent the rest of the day after their prior meeting thinking about the raven non-stop. Kouyou placed his glass drink down onto the coffee table and sat up against the sofa, smiling invitingly to Yuu, his eyes unable to tear away from the raven’s frame. Yuu eased the door shut behind him and made his way anxiously over to the blond.  
   
The first thing they did was kiss.  
   
No words said, no names uttered, nothing. The moment Yuu’s knees brushed against the velvet fabric of the sofa, Kouyou was grabbing the younger man into his grasp and running his hand up Yuu’s silky raven strands, pulling him in closer for their lips to meet. Kouyou’s yearning for the raven these past five months showed – his tongue slipped in the first chance he got, delving into the kiss eagerly, exploring the cavern of his mouth with not even an ounce of hesitance. Yuu couldn’t do much but keep his eyes closed, clenching his fingers tightly against Kouyou’s white dress shirt, finding the top few buttons already un-buttoned, revealing skin that Yuu so desperately wanted to feel against his skin again.  
   
“ _Nnn_ ,” Yuu whimpered into the kiss, feeling Kouyou’s arms on him slowly lead the raven’s body to curl up into a position against Kouyou’s lap, seating his ass right above Kouyou’s thighs. Yuu had chills at how gently and yet aggressively the older man was kissing him; Kouyou prolonged the kiss as far as he could, gasping for breath into the kiss every few seconds, their lips hardly leaving more than an inch away from each other. Yuu’s heart skipped a beat whenever Kouyou’s tongue twirled with his and made him go giddy from how good it felt, to have Kouyou so close in proximity with him again. The older man’s breathing was hot and heavy, and his movements desperate.  
   
Kouyou loved him so much, and this was his way of telling Yuu how much he’d missed him in all the time they’d spent apart.  
   
Yuu thought they must have kissed forever, before Kouyou even contemplated the thought of letting Yuu go. And when he did, he was flickering his eyes open to gaze into Yuu’s eyes, full of captivation and love for the raven. He patted the side of Yuu’s hair gently, fingers combing down Yuu’s hair over again and again and again. They said nothing for a few moments, neither wanting to break the sweet-sounding silence between them.  
   
“I missed you so much,” Kouyou was the first to give in, his hands falling from Yuu’s hair and circling down Yuu’s waist instead. “I’ve thought of you everyday, from the very moment you told me you didn’t want us to do this anymore. I thought about you _so_ much.”  
   
It gnawed at Yuu’s heart to hear that. It was obvious Kouyou wanted to be with Yuu, above everything, despite the show he’d put on in the office where he’d told Yuu his heart wasn’t ready to let Yuu in again. Kouyou had just been attempting to protect his heart, even though his heart still always chose the raven in the end.  
   
“I shouldn’t have left you, Kou, I’m so sorry.”  
   
“No, you shouldn’t have,” Kouyou said, lowering his gaze, his voice pained. “You should have chosen me. But you couldn’t, and I have to understand that. Yutaka… Yutaka’s good enough, he can make you happy. If it has been written in the stars that I will always only play ever second fiddle in the love of my life’s eyes, it’s fine. I can’t control my heart, and I can’t control you. These moments are good enough… Being with you, like this, is enough.”  
   
Remorse flooded Yuu’s eyes. Kouyou’s love for him was always so forgiving, so accepting, so selfless and so kind. Kouyou had long resigned to the fact that Yuu was probably never going to leave his husband for Kouyou alone – for whatever _goddamn_ reason that Yuu couldn’t understand – and Kouyou wasn’t blaming Yuu for that. He was willing to take whatever he could get, if only to know Yuu’s heart could belong to him for just a little while.  
   
“You… You came back, just in time, actually,” Kouyou dropped his voice to a shameful whisper, and it quickly got Yuu’s attention. Why was he suddenly looking so guilty?  
   
“Yuu… I have something I need to tell you.”  
   
Yuu didn’t have a good feeling about this. He shifted forward a bit, extending a hand up to tuck at the stray blond hairs by the side of Kouyou’s cheek, slipping them back behind the older man’s ear. Kouyou always looked _so_ beautiful.  
   
“What is it, Kou?”  
   
The bomb was dropped onto Yuu’s head without a single warning.  
   
“Yuu… I’m going to propose.”  
   
Kouyou looked completely shattered as he conveyed the news. Yuu’s heart missed the next couple of beats, until the raven remembered to breathe again. The raven-haired had no idea how to react. Kouyou… _proposing_? To someone else that wasn’t him? Yuu felt like his entire world had just crashed onto his shoulders. Kouyou had _just_ told him this afternoon that he loved no one else but Yuu, and yet… he was proposing?  
   
Yuu was instantly disillusioned. Was this the kind of love that Kouyou harbored for him?  
   
“To Takanori?” Yuu asked coldly, completing Kouyou’s sentence for him, a vacant look on his face. Shock – _and_ sadness – had overtaken him so much, the raven didn’t know what to think. After spouting so much of that _you’re the only one for me_ bullshit, Kouyou was thinking of proposing to another; he was thinking of proposing to someone that wasn’t Yuu. And Yuu felt his heart smash at that thought. Because there had only been one proposal Kouyou had done back in their original life, and it had been to Yuu. Everything had been perfect; from the circumstances of the proposal, to Kouyou’s exact words to him, to the beautiful diamond rose ring.  
   
And now it was all going to belong to his best friend.  
   
“ _Princess_ ,” Kouyou began to pacify the raven, receptive of how Yuu was slowly withdrawing his touches from him. Yuu’s fingers had left the front of Kouyou’s shirt, and the raven had started to retreat uncomfortably away from the blond, his head turning angrily to the side. Yuu wasn’t pleased with the news, and Kouyou could feel his heart breaking by the second. “Princess, please, don’t be unreasonable about this.”  
   
“You don’t even love him,” Yuu’s words left him stiffly. “Why are you _proposing_? Who’s the one being unreasonable about this?” How could Kouyou do this to him?  
   
“Yuu,” Kouyou reached a hand up to cup at the side of Yuu’s jaw. He gazed into the raven’s moonlit eyes, admiring briefly how stunning those dark orbs looked. “You know I love you. You’re my everything. But this is an affair, Yuu, and nothing is going to come out of it. I can’t be selfish about Takanori’s desires. Takanori has stayed with me through all of this mess, and he needs this, needs someone to take care of him, even if my heart can’t fully be there.”  
   
Yuu’s voice came out distraught. “But this means he’ll get to call you his _husband_.”  
   
And that was something Yuu hadn’t even got a chance to do, yet. Takanori couldn’t be taking this away from him. It wasn’t fair.  
   
“You don’t think I’m upset thinking about how Yutaka gets to do the same?” Kouyou asked, anguish apparent in his eyes. “How Yutaka gets to share a bed with you every night? How Yutaka gets to do all the things for you that I _should_ be doing for you? You’re acting like you hadn’t married him first; like you hadn’t broke my heart first.”  
   
The blond’s words were like a harsh slap in Yuu’s face. Kouyou hadn’t said a single lie. Even if Yuu’s past actions in this universe weren’t necessarily made by him, Kouyou didn’t know that, and Kouyou had only known of how he’d been picked second, and passed over for Yutaka all these while. Yuu had hurt him first, and he had no right to stop Kouyou from marriage if he so wanted to.  
   
“Takanori wants a family, do you know that?” Kouyou continued softly, regret tainting his voice, hoping desperately Yuu would understand. “It’s the least I can give to him, after everything I’ve done to hurt him. He doesn’t deserve this, and you know that. He doesn’t deserve… _us_.”  
   
Despite how hateful Takanori had been back at the office, Yuu would always fondly remember him as his best friend, and he knew Kouyou was right. Takanori had done nothing to deserve this. He had only been trying to protect what was his – _Kouyou_ – and Yuu had always been the third party in his eyes.  
   
But that didn’t mean the sound of Kouyou proposing to another didn’t hurt him any less.  
   
“I want to be a bigger person, _so_ bad,” Yuu struggled with his conscience, his tone crushed, his eyes full of sorrow. “I want to tell you that I don’t mind, that nothing matters as long as we’re together. That Takanori’s lucky to have you, that I want you to achieve your perfect life with him. And I know that’s what you want me to say, to do; to be happy for you.  
   
But I can’t, Kouyou. I can’t. I can’t do that. How can I be happy, when the person I love beyond anything in the world is telling me he plans to propose to someone else? You’re everything to me. And to know that you plan to wed another is killing me inside out. The very thought of you staking a claim on someone else just hurts. And I don’t want it to happen, I really can’t live with that happening.”  
   
Kouyou looked extremely disheartened by Yuu’s words, having never liked doing anything that would upset the raven. But this was something he had to do for Takanori, and he knew it. It was either going along with his morals, or going ahead with appeasing his lover.  
   
And he couldn’t keep dedicating his entire life to Yuu like this, leaving Takanori selfishly on the side, without giving back anything in return.  
   
“I don’t want to grow old with no one by my bedside,” Kouyou admitted, his face awash with heartache. “And my heart will forever remain rooted with you, but I do care for Takanori. Enough, anyway. And he cares, enough, back, too. If I don’t marry him, Yuu, there’ll be no one else for me there. When the time comes, when my time is up, I’ll die, alone, with a broken heart. And do you know where you’ll be, Yuu? You’ll be right by Yutaka’s side, aging happily with him into old age. And you won’t visit me anymore, when our legs get too painful to walk, and you’ve grown tired of keeping secrets from your husband. You’ll leave me. And I won’t have anyone else.”  
   
Yuu’s heart ached. He saw Kouyou’s point, he really did, but the additional thought of Takanori being able to be there for Kouyou even into old age just chewed at Yuu’s heart. Yuu was supposed to do that for him. Yuu was Kouyou’s _fiancé_. Yuu was meant to marry Kouyou, and no one else. Things couldn’t be turning out this way. They were meant to walk the aisle down together, have a two-week long honeymoon together, have a family together, and grow old together. And because of Yuu’s mistake in choosing Yutaka over him, now they would never, ever, have any of that. Yuu would never know what a future would be like with the blond.  
   
“I even brought the ring here just to show you,” Kouyou sighed softly, hands slipping into the depths of his pockets.  
   
Yuu’s heart fell to the pits of his stomach, recognizing the ring box as soon as it was pulled out. One look and he knew it was _his._ Kouyou then gently opened the black, velvety box, revealing the silver-onyx engagement ring that had been so specifically crafted into spirals, with _his_ unmistakable sparkling diamond carved intricately into the elegant shape of a rose. Yuu immediately felt the urge to throw up.  
   
Yuu had felt _so_ strongly against this marriage in the first place, but now that his worst fears had been confirmed; now that Kouyou was to be proposing to Takanori with a ring that had always belonged to Yuu from the start, Yuu couldn’t let Kouyou go through with this wedding, no. That was _his_ ring. This was to be his future, not Takanori’s. He couldn’t just watch his best friend replace him in Kouyou’s eyes like this.  
   
“I wanted to show you the ring first, before him. It was always meant for you… I’d always thought I’d be marrying you,” Kouyou said sadly, glancing down to the ring in his hands.  
   
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it? I’m really hoping Takanori likes it. I put in a lot of effort into it.”  
   
Yuu had to suppress the tears that were quickly swarming around his eyes.  
   
“It’s… beautiful. It’s beyond beautiful. It’s perfect. And– And you had made it for _me_ ,” the raven-haired had to pace his breaths, no longer able to breathe through his clogged nose. “You gave it to me. Remember? On your 36th birthday. You have to remember, Kouyou, _please_. You said you still wanted to wake up to my face next to you at age 80, and you still wanted to kiss me until you forgot who you were.”  
   
Kouyou frowned, slowly growing confused at Yuu’s references.  
   
“Yuu, babydoll, I know you’re upset, but I have to do this, for Takanori and myself, alright? If you truly love me, you’ll understand that…”  
   
_He doesn’t remember_. Kouyou doesn’t remember, and he doesn’t believe Yuu, and Yuu has no one to depend on in this universe. He was the only one who _didn’t_ belong to this fucked up sitation; however, he was made to live in it, without reason at all. This wasn’t fair. This wasn’t fucking _fair_. Yuu didn’t deserve to lose his fiancé like this. Yuu had made no mistakes in _his_ past, and he’d always chosen Kouyou. And you know what? Yuu was mad. Yuu was fuming _mad_. He didn’t deserve being pushed into a universe that did fuck all for him, and he didn’t deserve having to live with consequences that he _hadn’t_ made.  
   
And if this universe was trying to test him, then it could very well go ahead, because from right this second on, Yuu was no longer giving any fucks about how things were supposed to flow. Yuu loved Kouyou with all his heart, all his life, and he wanted so badly to be the one waking up to Kouyou’s face instead. And he wasn’t going to let anyone else have that – not even Takanori.  
   
“Marry me,” Yuu hadn’t even thought it through, and his lips had already bust out the two words he never expected he’d ever say. And he watched as Kouyou went dumbfounded, his eyes widening in astonishment, wondering if he’d heard it wrong the first time round.  
   
Yuu was… _proposing_?  
   
“Marry me, Takashima Kouyou. I’ll be there for you by your bedside, even at age 80. You’ll never have to grow old without me. My legs might hurt too much to walk by then, but I would pull myself across a thousand miles just to reach you. I want to be with you so, _so_ bad. And I don’t know why or how I ever thought it was right to choose Yutaka over you, but that was wrong. I was wrong. I never loved Yutaka. I love _you_. And I’ll leave him. I’m going to leave Yutaka in a heartbeat. I’m not going to spend another night without you. I want to call _you_ my husband, not him.”  
   
Kouyou’s lips had unconsciously unravelled into a smile bit by bit with every of Yuu’s words, and he’d begun pinching himself just so he knew he wasn’t dreaming up Yuu’s proposal to him.  
   
“My baby princess… Do you know what you’re asking me?”  
   
But Kouyou already looked so happy, _god_ , so fucking happy, and Yuu’s chest felt so warm and tingly at the sight. Kouyou must have been waiting for a chance like this for _ages_ , and just when he gave up all hope on Yuu ever leaving Yutaka for him, Yuu – _just_ – promised to him that he would.  
   
“Will you marry me, Takashima Kouyou?” Yuu whispered, a pleading look in his eye. It occurred to Yuu that the raven had gotten _so_ brave in all the time that had passed here, and he was rather liking this newfound fearlessness that gave him strength to tackle any battle. He was going to fight for what he believed in, and he believed in love. _His_ love. His Kouyou.  
   
“Yes,” Kouyou nodded his head, not once, not twice, but non-stop, the smile on his lips too wide for his face to contain. He was smiling so much it actually _hurt_.  
   
Yuu leaned over then and sank his lips against Kouyou’s, capturing them in a brief, and soft kiss. Yuu felt fireworks explode in his heart, knowing he’d just secured Kouyou’s heart to his, knowing that nothing would ever separate them both now. They were meant for each other, and this would be their happy ending, albeit rather delayed in this lifetime. But it was here, and Yuu had made it happen. He had taken things into his own hands, and made a decision that would make both of them much, much happier.  
   
“I love you,” Yuu murmured, when they drew their faces apart, and their gazes were back on each other. Kouyou’s tearful, grateful eyes wouldn’t leave Yuu’s face, his heart thudding loudly in happiness for all to hear.  
   
“I love you so much, too,” Kouyou replied, and he kissed Yuu again, this time against the cheek, only pulling away so he could retrieve the ring from the box in his hold. He hurriedly picked it up from the box, then reached for Yuu’s slender hand, sliding Yutaka’s wedding band off the raven’s ring finger, replacing it with the diamond rose ring in its place instead.  
   
The ring was a perfect fit. Yuu immediately went at ease once the ring was rightfully back on his finger, delighted to again be claimed back by the man he truly loved. Kouyou couldn’t keep his eyes off Yuu’s hand as well, when the proof of their engagement was simply resting right there, atop Yuu’s finger.  
   
“The ring fits you perfectly,” Kouyou smiled, his eyes filled with adoration as he looked towards it. “ _God,_ I always knew it was meant for you. And now it’s yours, and you’re mine, and this time it’s for forever, and I’m so happy, I…” the blond was shaken slightly at this point, desperately blinking away the droplets of tears that had found their way onto his lashes. The very sight was beautiful. Yuu couldn’t be happier, knowing he’d made the right decision.  
   
“I never thought I’d be able to have you again, like this, in this lifetime,” Kouyou spoke through his tears, his voice croaked. Kouyou rarely broke into tears like this, when he always put that strong and authoritative façade on when facing others, and for him to take that mask off Yuu and give in to his emotions meant that he must be _so_ overwhelmed he couldn’t help but give in to tears.  
   
“I thought I’d lost you. Again, and again, each time you left. And every time I had to convince myself you were never coming back, just so it wouldn’t hurt if you never did. But each time you came back. And my heart kept getting more and more hopeful you would stay.”  
   
“But I never did, did I,” Yuu looked to him sadly. Twenty-eight year old Yuu must have broken so, _so_ many hearts. “Kouyou, the past doesn’t matter anymore. What matters now is the future… _Our_ future. I’m here, and I’ll stay, and we’ll have everything you ever wanted in a marriage. We made all the wrong decisions, but we’ll make them all right now. I love you, and that will never change.”  
   
Kouyou smiled with a nod, then reached forward to choke Yuu into an embrace, too excited to speak. Yuu laughed and hugged him firmly back, his hands stroking up Kouyou’s blond hair, burying his nose into the crook of Kouyou’s neck. This was where Yuu rightfully belonged – in his arms, engaged to the love of his life, and making Kouyou happy.  
   
“Just never yell at me over a folder,” Yuu teased him, even if he knew Kouyou wouldn’t get it.  
   
“I’ll never let you go,” Kouyou promised, then kissed the side of Yuu’s head, laughing the night away with his newly-engaged fiancé.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've updated the next chapter as well!


	62. the Office XII

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I updated 2 chapters at one go! Remember to read the previous one first :)

Yuu reached the doorstep of Yutaka’s place around midnight, not wanting to risk it and return too late in case his husband ended his shift early. Kouyou had dropped him off downstairs in his car, rambling on excitedly about looking into buying a new home for the both of them, saying moving into a new house was long overdue for him anyway; and he wanted to let Yuu try his hand at renovating a home that would belong to the both of them. Yuu had simply giggled and kissed Kouyou goodbye, making arrangements to see him tomorrow again.  
  
Then Yuu had taken the lift up to the penthouse, pleased to see that the lights were still out and that no one was home as of yet. Since Yutaka hadn’t returned home from work, Yuu was safe from any interrogation, and Yuu needed just a little bit more time to himself to figure out a way to break the news to his husband that he wanted a divorce.  
  
Divorce. Funny how the word sounded so serious and burdensome, like it must weigh a ton. Yuu had never thought he would ever get a divorce. He’d always believed in marrying someone who he was determined to spend the rest of his life with, and he’d always heard of how complicated and messy divorces could get, so he never wanted one. This time, though, it was different. Yuu needed his happy ending with Kouyou, and Yuu _couldn’t_ see himself living out the rest of his life like this with Yutaka. How could he ever agree to walk down the aisle with him? It still boggled his mind.  
  
In this lifetime, Yuu had no best friend, no lover, but he had a sad drunkard to satisfy his sexual needs, and a husband he didn’t even love. What did Yuu even do in his free time? Whore around with other men? Yuu shuddered to think about who else Yuu had been fucking around with behind his husband. Yuu was never a skank, and he didn’t want to be, either. He didn’t want any of this. He just wanted a happy, domestic life with Kouyou, and his best friend back by his side.  
  
…Though he still had to work on that best friend part. But if he had already gotten Kouyou back, then the rest would soon follow, right? He’d already taken a step into the right direction.  
  
Speaking of the devil.  
  
As soon as Yuu exited the lift, the very man in question appeared to be standing right before Yuu, a few feet away, evidently waiting right at Yuu’s doorstep. Yuu was immediately frowning when he recognized that head of coffee brown hair, with no idea why or what Takanori had turned up at the doorstep of his house for. Was he drunk? Takanori was still dressed in the clothes he’d worn to work though, like Yuu had seen this afternoon, and he looked very much sober, which meant he couldn’t have been drinking. The brunet’s eyes raised up to meet Yuu’s once he noticed the raven-haired walking towards the door, but there still wasn’t a single trace of smile visible on his face.  
  
Since when had Takanori grown so… detached?  
  
“What are you doing here?” Yuu questioned, and this time he was the one that was acting cautious, his eyes scanning Takanori’s body for any offensive weapons he might be holding. He hated how his first instinct was to check if Takanori had come here with an intention to harm him, seeing as fate never liked giving Yuu his happy endings for free, but Yuu didn’t know if he could still trust Takanori at this point.  
  
The man was different, distant, and so empty of life; and Yuu found himself having to be careful around him. Takanori wasn’t the same Takanori Yuu knew anymore, and as sad as he was about that, Yuu’s own safety came first.  
  
“You can spare five minutes for a chat,” Takanori said, a frown on his lips. “ _Can’t_ you?”  
  
And since when did the brunet learn how to be so shrewd in the way he spoke?  
  
“Fine, but not for long. Yutaka’s going to be home soon. How did you find out where I stayed, anyway?” Yuu folded his arms, taking care to hide the engagement ring under his elbow. He wanted Kouyou to break the news of a break-up to Takanori himself, not him. Yuu was exposed and vulnerable out here, and he didn’t have much to protect himself with. It didn’t help that his clothes were also tight as hell, and not good to be conducting any karate moves in.  
  
“That’s not important,” Takanori brushed the matter off as soon as it came. Yuu swallowed hard at how easily Takanori was dominating the conversation – he definitely picked up a skill or two from all those time spent with Kouyou. Taking a menacing step forward, the brunet gazed disinterestedly into Yuu’s eyes.  
  
“I’m here to talk to you about Kouyou.”  
  
“There’s nothing to talk about,” Yuu immediately answered.  
  
“Then explain to me why Kouyou just dropped you off in his car.”  
  
Yuu’s eyes snapped up to him at the accusation. Takanori had seen the blond drop him off… which must mean Takanori knew about their meeting tonight. “Fine, we met. So what?” It wasn’t like Takanori seeing them was going to change anything. They were still engaged.  
  
Takanori’s gaze hardened at the knowledge that sank right down inside of him. “I see. He agreed to get back together with you again, didn’t he? How many times has it been now? Four? Five?”  
  
Yuu stilled his movements, a look of surprise on his face. _That many_? No wonder Kouyou had looked so broken. “You mean… I’d left him all those previous times?”  
  
“And I cleaned up your mess everytime you walked out the door,” Takanori grimaced. “Do you know that? You don’t know that, do you?”  
  
“Look here, Taka,” Defiance roused up in Yuu’s eyes, unable to stand how Takanori was blaming him for everything. Then, in one single breath, Yuu began to rant everything out from his mind.  
  
“If you know that he’s been cheating on you, leave him. Why are you so insistent on sticking with a man whose heart is clearly not there? And I’m not saying this as someone who wants to get Kouyou away from you – I’m saying this as a friend. I know we don’t seem to be on good terms now, and I still don’t know the reason why, but you’ve changed, and I’d like to think being with a man who doesn’t even love you is part of that reason. Why won’t you leave him?”  
  
Takanori didn’t answer right away; he simply stared at him, and stared, _and stared._ Then Yuu’s words finally seemed to struck a chord inside of him, and the brunet was turning his head away, almost in an offended huff, flitting his heavy eyelids shut. And for the first time since Yuu had met Takanori in this universe, the brunet appeared to feel _something_. Takanori’s hands bunched up into fists at the side, as if angry at something, _someone_ , and it perplexed Yuu.  
  
“Because I won’t have anything if I leave him.” Takanori’s words were so heavy, and they left his perfectly lined lips like lead. “Happy? You got me, Yuu. I have nothing, and you have everything. The man of your dreams still loves you, and will do anything to be with you. Your husband’s so in love with you, and he’s willing to look past every single affair you have. But as for me–” the brunet clenched his fists harder.  
  
“As for me– I have nothing to my name. No career, no home, no lover, and no one who will even care to stay. I’m holding on to a man that groans out your name when he makes love to me. I’m sleeping in a bed that’s been sprayed with your perfume. I’m _nothing_ to him, and I have to accept that.”  
  
_No_.  
  
Yuu felt every one of Takanori’s words stab at his heart with dull pain as he tried to come to terms with the confession that had just met his ears. Takanori’s life… had turned out like this? But Takanori hadn’t done anything to deserve it at all; not like Yuu, who had made every mistake he possibly could. Takanori had always put up that fun, spontaneous front of his, when Yuu knew he had always been fragile, and sensitive, and so, _so_ soft. Takanori loved everyone he cared about with the biggest heart he’d ever known, and he always did his best to make the people around him happy. He’d been so adamant, back then, on bringing Yuu and Kouyou back together when the older man had gone off to Europe. _His_ Takanori had done that.  
  
And from the likes of it all, Yuu was wrong; Takanori hadn’t changed at all.  
  
He simply withered away.  
  
“What happened to Akira?” Yuu asked, his voice softer this time, taking extra care with his words. Something must have happened between the couple, and he didn’t want to bruise Takanori’s heart even further with unwanted memories – but Yuu _had_ to know. “Taka… Akira still loves you, he really does. You need to contact him again.”  
  
Because there was no way Akira would have landed himself in such a miserable state had Takanori stayed on in his life. Akira wouldn’t have lost all motivation to live a fruitful life, Akira wouldn’t have turned to alcohol to drown all his sorrows, Akira wouldn’t have used Yuu’s body for sex in an attempt to get over Takanori. Akira was still so deeply in love with Takanori, and Yuu could see that so clearly.  
  
“He can’t love me,” A dejected smile rose up on Takanori’s face. “And it’s better if I stay away, anyway. I made my mistake, and I have to live by it. You don’t just fix things with a simple ‘sorry’. It’s not that easy, especially not when you fucked up as bad as I did.”  
  
Yuu took a few more steps forward, until he was close enough to the brunet for the raven to extend a hand out for comfort. Takanori pulled away from his touch, looking more disgusted at himself than anyone else. Yuu then realized the loathing Takanori had displayed all these time wasn’t directed to Yuu specifically – it was to himself. Takanori hated himself. Takanori didn’t like the person he’d become, but he could do nothing about it. He couldn’t find any other way out.  
  
“What happened?” Yuu tried again, hoping he wasn’t probing too much.  
  
Takanori inhaled in a long, scarring breath, lowering his eyes to the ground. Rewounding all those memories in his head hurt, but perhaps telling his ex-best friend all about it might just be cathartic for him.  
  
“He never told me he loved me the way I wanted him to,” Takanori gasped out, furiously fighting the tears that threatened to spill. “He just never did. And you know me– me with the flashy presentations, me with the need for loud, romantic gestures. I was always so jealous of you, Yuu, you know that. Kouyou’s the type to do all of those, and more, and _more_. Kouyou’s so perfect, but he’s only perfect for you, and I realize that now. When you got engaged to Yutaka, Kouyou heard the news and – he could no longer eat, or sleep, or function, and it worried Akira and I to death, especially Akira; it’s his _best friend_ ,” Takanori paused for a second to take a breath.  
  
“Akira was never good with words, so I knew I had to step up and try my best. I tried to get to know Kouyou better, talk to him more, started cooking both Akira and him lunches – and then one day, after a long day at work, when they’d both stayed back in the office late into the night and I’d agreed to accompany them, too, I was in Kouyou’s office, making sure he was alright.  
  
I don’t know how or what happened still, but I think my efforts finally paid off. He looked up into my eyes for a moment, stared at me with that fond look he always gave you, and told me my eyes were beautiful. And that I was pretty, and that my heart was so kind, and that any man that had me should feel so, _so_ lucky. That he was so jealous of Akira, of how sweetly I treated him, and that I should have anything and anyone I wanted in the world, because I deserved it.”  
  
Yuu wasn’t going to deny the churning of his heart when he heard of the sweet things Kouyou had said to Takanori, especially when they felt so believably to be words that had left Kouyou’s mouth, but he knew everything must have been said on the spur of the moment, and Kouyou hadn’t meant it the way Takanori thought he did. Kouyou always had the gift of the gab, and such a sweet-talker, and he always was so, _so_ expressive when he cared for somebody.  
  
“I fell for it. Of course I did, my dumb ass fell for it,” Takanori brought a hand up to wipe angrily at his eyes. “Akira never said such things. How was I to know he loved me? I spent all these time worrying about where I stood in Akira’s eyes, and he never took time out to appreciate me the way I wanted to be. So when Kouyou told me my eyes were beautiful, I fell for it. I fell for him. And Kouyou must only be feeling lonely and dejected then, but I still allowed him to fuck me, in his office, over and over again. That’s when I thought I’d finally found true love.”  
  
“ _Oh_ , Taka…” Yuu’s face fell, knowing how and why exactly things had happened the way they did.  
  
_Akira never had a chance to tell Takanori he loved him exactly the way he wanted to be_.  
  
Because Yuu didn’t stay, when Yuu should have been there for Takanori the most. Yuu never had the chance to be Takanori’s roommate, and Takanori never had the chance to confide all of his worries about Akira to Yuu. Thus, the raven-haired had never persuaded Takanori to talk it out with Akira; he’d never given Takanori the extra push he needed to clear things up with this lover.  
  
They never had that car ride where they discussed what this relationship meant to them, and so Takanori had never known.  
  
“Akira found out, of course. He found out when he realized I didn’t want him anymore. And he was angry, _so_ angry. He left the next morning. He didn’t even want the house. He said it’d just remind him of me, and he didn’t want to continue staying in a place that would only remind him of his skank of a lover. He yelled at me so much I got scared. It was the first time I’d ever seen him that mad. But I told him I was glad to get rid of him, because he never deserved anyone like me anyway. Not unlike Kouyou. And I think that broke him. I think… I broke him,” Takanori choked back a furious sob.  
  
“So I went back to Kouyou, and needless to say, he took me back into his arms. Kouyou’s sweet like that. But overtime, we knew it wouldn’t work. We didn’t have to say it. I felt it. We were sucking the life out of each other. He still loved you so deeply, and I was just a substitute. And when you finally came back for him, I knew I had no say. He was going to have an affair with you, whether I liked it or not. Karma always gets you right in the back, doesn’t it?  
  
I sleep in an empty bed and eat breakfast alone. I never ask him where he goes, when he goes looking for you. And Kouyou appreciates that, of course, he provides for me with his lavish allowances. He knows he’s betraying me. But I _asked_ for this betrayal. And I deserved it. I deserved the life I chose. I deserved the very life I got.”  
  
Yuu didn’t hesitate to bring Takanori into a hug this time, not wanting to stand by the side and not show any form of care for the brunet when the man was obviously trembling and rocking himself with so much self-hatred. Takanori didn’t stop Yuu this time. He even seemed to relax in Yuu’s arms a little, showing the first few signs of giving in.  
  
“Taka, it’s not your fault. Don’t blame yourself, alright? It’s been so long… I’m sure Akira has forgiven you by now.”  
  
Takanori let out a self-depreciating laugh, shaking his head. “You know what’s the worse part? What’s worse is that I know now love isn’t made up of grand gestures and silly romantic statements. Love is when you wake up in a bed next to the person you love, and you feel completely at peace. Love is when he kisses you and you don’t even want to gasp for air. Love is when he places complete trust and faith in you, and everytime he looks at you, you know right away he loves you. He doesn’t have to say it. It just is.  
  
Love is love… and I thought he didn’t love me.”  
  
Yuu felt a tear escape the corner of his eye, hurting badly to see Takanori this way. “Taka… Taka, it’s not too late.”  
  
“No, it is,” Takanori heaved, clutching Yuu tightly. “It is, Yuu. We make these mistakes, and that’s how we know we’re human. But they have consequences, and we have to live with that. We don’t go back to the past, and try to bring back something that’s long lost. Life doesn’t work that way.”  
  
Yuu’s heart squeezed, his words leaving him in a hopeful whisper.  
  
“Love does.”  
  
Takanori gradually pulled back from the embrace, his reddening eyes staring straight into Yuu’s supportive ones.  
  
“Yuu,” Takanori’s eyes implored Yuu to listen. “Yuu, I’m not going to deny your love for Kouyou – we both know it’s there. Kouyou and Yuu can’t be torn apart, and I understand that. And under any other circumstance, I would have backed off the instant you came back for him, because I know he’s yours, and I have no rightful claim over him.  
  
But you’re forgetting one very important thing here. You’re married. You’re married, not to an abusive man, not to a man who doesn’t love you, but to a man that would do everything for you, and look past any wrong you do, just so you’ll stay. I don’t want to destroy your happiness, but you have to know that you’re destroying his. You made one very important decision to marry him, and that’s one decision you’re going to have to stick by. You know better than anyone how much you’ll break him. We’re not twenty-one, anymore, Yuu. We’re full-fledged adults, and we learn from these lessons, and we make the best of it. You can’t just walk out like this. He’s sacrificed so much for you.”  
  
Yuu’s gaze fell. “But he’s not the one I love.” But he knew what Takanori was saying was the truth. All these while Yuu had been raging, angry at the fact that he had to take responsibility for a life that he didn’t even choose, but he was now coming to terms with the fact that this wasn’t something he _had_ to choose. It was still his life, and he was _still_ Yuu, and it was everything he had left to hold onto right now. Yuu didn’t have to _like_ it for it to become his. Yuu couldn’t keep blaming twenty-eight year old Yuu for everything that had gone wrong.  
  
Like it or not, Yuu had made that decision himself. And Takanori was right; he was twenty-eight now, and much older, and much wiser, and he had to take responsibility for any action of his that could potentially hurt somebody.  
  
Like his husband, and his best friend, and the love of his life.  
  
“Yutaka knows, you know,” Takanori said quietly. “We always know. He knows when he sees you on your phone, texting a number that shouldn’t even be there, he knows when you take too long in the shower to wash off all evidence of another man on your skin. He knows when you kiss him like you don’t mean it, he knows when he grazes your arm with his hand and you flinch and pull away. He knows your heart isn’t with him. And he’s okay with that. Because you stayed. And that’s all he has to cling onto, Yuu, that’s all he needs from you. You’re all he has.”  
  
Yuu knew Takanori was speaking from the heart; he experienced entirely the same things with Kouyou. And even if his heart wasn’t completely there, Takanori _still_ cared enough for the blond, like what Kouyou had earlier said, and perhaps that was enough for him. For the both of them. And… for Yuu. Perhaps if Takanori promised to stay, promised to take care of Kouyou the same way Yuu would have done for him, promised to give him the family he must have always wanted –  
  
– perhaps Yuu wouldn’t be selfish, and own up to the mistakes he made. Because every mistake had come with a consequence, and Yuu’s one really wasn’t so bad. Yutaka loved him with his entire might, and all Yuu had to do was try. Yuu could try, right? That’s all it took.  
  
Yuu couldn’t keep dreaming of a happy, married life with Kouyou; perhaps in another reality, but not this one. In this one, too many hearts were at stake. Yutaka, and Takanori, and even Kouyou’s. Life wasn’t just a board game where Yuu could walk out on anyone whenever he felt like he was done with them, Yuu knew that now.  
  
And in this lifetime, Kouyou’s ring never belonged onto his finger.  
  
It belonged to Takanori.  
  
Yuu’s eyes fluttered down to look to the beautifully carved diamond rose ring on his finger, admiring it for just a second longer. _Maybe I’ll see you again. Maybe not. But at least I_ _know that in another lifetime, we belonged together_. And that knowledge was enough to give him the courage to slide the ring off, and hand it over to the brunet.  
  
Yuu felt slightly giddy at the motion, going weak-kneed quickly. It had to be the overwhelming sadness currently piling up in his heart; Yuu wanted nothing more than to head back on into the penthouse and burst into tears at the life he knew he was giving up. But him and Kouyou weren’t meant to be here, and Yuu knew it. He wouldn’t have been happy, anyway, if he’d went ahead with the marriage with Kouyou and destroyed so many people’s lives in return.  
  
Perhaps this was _his_ sacrifice.  
  
“Just… take care of him,” Yuu whispered, watching as Takanori took the ring from him. “And I promise you I’ll never look for him again.”  
  
_“The ring fits you perfectly. God, I always knew it was meant for you. And now it’s yours, and you’re mine, and this time it’s for forever, and I’m so happy.”_  
  
And then the ring left his fingertips. Yuu had to force himself to pull his eyes away. Takanori simply nodded his head to Yuu’s words, reached over for just one more grateful hug, and then he left.  
  
It took all of Yuu not to collapse to the ground and bury himself in tears.  
  
Instead, Yuu dragged himself back into the penthouse, unlocking the door while battling a pounding headache that was quickly coming over him. He felt sick to the stomach, and his heart felt like it’d been pierced through by a shard of glass a thousand times. He was also beginning to see dark spots infiltrating his vision, and he knew it wasn’t a good sign. He felt so weak he knew he was about to pass out. He managed to gather enough energy to trudge on to the kitchen and find his medicine lying by the counter, as well as fill up a glass of water for himself to drink. Then he sat himself down on a stool and tried to calm himself down, the discomfort and the pulsating pain thumping brutally at his head and heart all at once.  
  
He would never see Kouyou again.  
  
He wanted to cry, but he felt so numb he couldn’t. The pain silently wrecked him from within, tearing his heart into pieces he knew he would never be able to collect. Kouyou’s cool blond hair, and his dazzling eyes, and his sweet, boyish smile… Yuu would never see, or feel, or touch any of those again. And Yuu didn’t know how Takanori was going to break the news to Kouyou, that Yuu had given up their engagement in return for Takanori and Yutaka’s happiness, but Yuu was just thankful he wasn’t there to witness it. Kouyou had looked _so_ happy earlier that he’d even broken down into tears, and Yuu knew knowing that Yuu had walked out on him yet again must cause an even more violent reaction.  
  
_“I never thought I’d be able to have you again, like this, in this lifetime.”_  
  
Yuu had let Kouyou down one last time.  
  
But at least it was the last, Yuu thought to himself, forcefully putting a smile onto his face. No more heartache from now on. No more.  
  
The front door was unlocked again ten minutes later, and Yuu was quickly hobbling up from his seat to the door, knowing it must be no one other than Yutaka that had come home. The doctor, still attired in his white coat, had a look of surprise – and delight – on to see Yuu waiting by the door for him, and was parting his lips wide into a thankful smile, hurriedly receiving Yuu into his arms.  
  
“You were waiting for me, Yuu? You really shouldn’t have…” Yutaka grinned, squeezing Yuu so tight the raven thought he was going to lose his breath –  
  
– and he might just have.  
  
Because everything went black right then and there; and all he could feel was Yutaka desperately shaking at his shoulders, and hear drowning sounds of Yutaka frantically calling his name.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you get to hear Taka's side of the story! not so villain-like now, is he? honestly, Taka has so many levels to him that sometimes it overwhelms me XD;;
> 
> I kinda brought Yuu into this universe to give him some lessons, and I think he's learnt :3 Notice how Yuu's dizzy spells only kicked in once Yuu made up his mind to hand the ring over to Taka?
> 
> anyway, I think you guys (well, most of you) have finally reached the moment you have been waiting for! <3
> 
> share with me your thoughts as usual-- it's been a rollercoaster ride. XD (also, am I updating toooo fast????? I feel like I should pace my updates more :-----D)


	63. the Office XIII

“ _Takanori, please don’t sit on Yuu like that, he needs some air to breathe…”_  
   
Dead weight.  
   
That was exactly what Yuu felt like. There was an aching pain shooting up in his arms as well as back, and he found himself having to exert an incredible amount of strength just to be able to suck in breaths and exhale them out. His breathing was extremely slow, and his eyelids were too heavy for him to push open at first try. Yuu felt so fatigued and weak that it nerved him. Had he overly exhausted his body? Why was he hurting all over? And the hammering headache in his head wasn’t helping much, either. Yuu felt _sick_ to the core. Could he just lay here and fall back asleep? He wasn’t feeling well enough to force himself up, despite his semi-conscious state.  
   
“ _Yuu just needs a jump-start to awaken, that’s all...”_  
   
_“Takanori – you’re going to kill him. Anyway, I’m calling for a doctor, he’ll be on his way…”_  
   
The two muffled voices arguing animatedly in the background slowly reached Yuu’s ears. He hadn’t been able to understand the words seemingly spoken in gibberish before, and he’d ignored them in his state of pain; but now he was quickly growing aware of the existence of those voices, and they were piecing into words that were actually making sense in his brain.  
   
Hold on. Was that Takanori… _and_ Kouyou?  
   
Shit. It was definitely them. Their voices were way too distinctive not to recognize, and they were right in the room with him. Wait – but _why_? Hadn’t Takanori just left for home? Hadn’t Kouyou dropped him off in his car earlier? Yuu attempted to backtrack his memories and tried to fill in the missing gap that might have led them to turn up in Yutaka’s penthouse to be with him. Hadn’t Yuu passed out right in Yutaka’s arms? The doctor _should_ be the one Yuu would be waking up to – not the brunet and the blond.  
   
Unless – it couldn’t be – could it be possibly – perhaps by some miracle of God –  
   
_He was… actually back?_  
   
Using all of his might to do so, Yuu’s eyes staggered sluggishly upwards, determined to pinpoint his exact location. The outside light that gradually filtered into his eyes caused the raven-haired to wince, letting slip an uncomfortable groan at the sudden intrusion. The weight on Yuu’s chest – that Yuu only now realized was there – suddenly shifted, and appeared to be moving forward, leaning forward into Yuu.  
   
Then Yuu pushed his eyes open fully, grimacing as he did so, and came right into sight with Takanori’s curious hazel eyes, their faces only an _inch_ away from each other’s. Takanori’s eyes widened open right then, shocked at Yuu’s sudden awakening, and he observed Yuu quizzically for a second longer, bringing a finger to his chin, inspecting the raven-haired as carefully as he could.  
   
_What the fuck, Takanori_. Yuu would have raised a hand up to push at Takanori’s chest, demanding for the brunet to give him some personal space – if only Yuu’s arms weren’t presently feeling so frail.  
   
“Yuu’s awake!” Takanori yelled out excitedly in the next second, straddling Yuu’s chest feverishly in up and down movements. Yuu flinched, realizing now that the brunet was _sitting_ atop his goddamn chest. No wonder he’d felt so much like a dead weight, and no wonder he was struggling so hard to breathe. Takanori had been the culprit this entire time.  
   
Still, now that he’d met his beloved Takanori that held the same kind of enthusiasm as a ten-year-old child who’d just been told he would be getting an Xbox 360, Yuu finally knew where he was.  
   
_Home_.  
   
Yuu felt instant relief wash all over him, releasing out a huge sigh and smiling softly to himself at the same time. Well, not exactly Kouyou’s penthouse per say, but home for him had always been with his loved ones. And Kouyou and Takanori were here, and he knew Akira wouldn’t be too far away. He’d arrived home, safely, and he’d left a life that he knew was never his at all. He hadn’t awoken to the arms of a doctor, and he hadn’t had to spend another night _not_ lying in the arms of Kouyou.  
   
Yuu was finally home.  
   
Yuu was so happy he could feel himself almost tearing up. That life had been a hellhole, and he’d chosen the right moment to awaken from it. Now he was back in his own life where things actually made sense, where Kouyou was still _his,_ where Takanori had never stopped being his best friend, and where Akira was still Takanori’s beloved beau. Yuu no longer needed to worry about meeting new (unwanted) surprises every single time he turned a corner. Everything was back to being perfect.  
   
And _now_ that he was really observing his surroundings, he noticed he was back in Kouyou’s office, lying on the blond’s black leather sofa, Yuu’s body having been carried and lowered on to it for god knows what reason. Since the only incident he could remember happening before this was Yuu and Kouyou’s heated argument over a stupid folder, Yuu concluded he must have passed out earlier on in a fit of anger and exhaustion, which landed him in a warped, twisted ass dream where everything had felt so… vivid to him. Thinking back on it now creeped the raven-haired out – how was it possible that such an alternate universe felt so truly real and believable to him, like it’d _actually_ happened? Or was it a timeline that truly existed somewhere else? Yuu wouldn’t ever know.  
   
But Yuu never needed to. In this universe, all was right with the world.  
   
He was just so, _so_ grateful to be back in a world where he’d never made the same mistakes. And as fucked up as _that_ universe had been, Yuu knew he’d taken away many valuable lessons from it. And he knew – first and foremost – that he couldn’t take any of the loved ones by his side for granted. No matter how fucked up he thought they could get sometimes, nothing would ever compare to losing any of them from his life. Yuu hadn’t liked seeing the light vanish from either of their eyes, and Yuu knew he’d do anything in the power to help them keep them.  
   
Especially Takanori – his poor, _poor_ Takanori. Yuu would do anything to help keep the shine in his eyes. Yuu adored their friendship so much, and he was determined to be there for Takanori in every step of the way, now.  
   
…Once Takanori got his heavy ass off Yuu’s chest, that was. _Ow._ Jesus, how much did that brunet weigh?  
   
“Get off me, Taka,” Yuu moaned out, his voice coming out hoarse, his tone grouchy. He slapped slightly at Takanori’s shoulder, weakly pushing him away with what little energy he could muster. _Ugh_ , why was he feeling so sick? Was he catching a fever? Yuu then felt his stomach emit a soft growl, and Yuu remembered he had been working through lunchtime earlier in the day, and he’d been too busy to grab breakfast in the morning too.  
   
No wonder he’d passed out. The stress from his work, the absence of food, and the overwhelming hurt and anger he’d felt in that argument with Kouyou must have been too much for him to take all at one go. Yuu must have collapsed midway, and he hadn’t even been able to realize it himself. Yuu hadn’t been able to understand why he’d been so randomly transported to a life he didn’t even belong to, but now he knew that _that_ was the missing gap.  
   
Takanori removed himself from Yuu’s body as soon as the raven was complaining, still looking very much bright-eyed and happy over Yuu’s awakening. It tugged at Yuu’s heartstrings to see Takanori in such high spirits, knowing _this_ was the side of Takanori he missed the most. The brunet best friend quickly ambushed Yuu into a tight hug, his hand moving up to ruffle through the raven’s hair in concern.  
   
“We were all so worried about you! Yuu, you haven’t been eating, haven’t you? I knew your evil boss was overworking you,” Takanori made a loud ‘tsk’ as he said that, eyes turning to glare irately at the blond-haired CEO man standing far off into the distance.  
   
Yuu followed Takanori’s gaze and turned his head slightly to meet Kouyou’s back figure; the man didn’t seem to notice that Yuu had woken up from his fainting episode yet. Instead, the older man appeared to have stepped out onto the office balcony, speaking urgently into his cellphone held up against his ear. The blond’s lips were back in a tight line and his brows were furrowed; his hand was aggravatedly raking up through his hair again, a habit that Kouyou never seemed to be able to get rid of when he was anxious. Yuu felt his heart flutter happily at the sight, knowing just moments ago he’d thought he lost the blond forever. But in this universe, Kouyou was his. No one else’s. And Yuu was so, _so_ lucky.  
   
“Pfft, not to worry, Yuu, I gave him a _huuuge_ scolding earlier. He was being an asshole to you! I told him he had to get his act together or I’d steal you away and form a polyamorous relationship with you and Akira,” Takanori snickered deviously – and rather triumphantly – to himself at the mention, leading Yuu to raise an inquisitive eyebrow at such a plan. _Riiight._  
   
“Anyway, you scared everyone to death. Well, mostly Kouyou, since Akira and I had faith you’d be alright. Kouyou’s calling for this top, private doctor he knows to come and examine you. You’ll be fine, I’m sure of it!”  
   
Yuu couldn’t help but break into a soft laugh. Takanori was still the same. Takanori was _his_ Takanori. Takanori was the one sun in his life that Yuu never wanted to see melt away. The cold, detached Takanori he’d seen for a brief moment had frightened Yuu to death, and Yuu vowed silently to himself he’d never let Takanori to turn into someone like that. Takanori was too precious for this world.  
   
And – suddenly overcome with _such_ gratitude for his best friend – Yuu was squeezing Takanori in his embrace with what little energy he had left, snuggling his head into Takanori’s shoulder. Takanori always felt so comforting. Yuu couldn’t imagine getting to where he was now without _his_ Takanori.  
   
“I love you, Taka,” Yuu’s voice came out in a low whisper, still sounding very much raspy, his tone weak. As Yuu nuzzled his head further against the brunet, Takanori came to an abrupt standstill, surprised by the sudden display of affection. Yuu was never usually _this_ touchy. The Yuu now quickly resembled a newborn kitten nestling up to his mother, desperate for affection.  
   
“Uh… Yuu,” Takanori’s eyes were still wide as he jabbed at Yuu’s shoulder gently with a finger. “You’re really considering the polyamorous relationship, aren’t you? Now, I’m not going to deny that’s a _good_ idea, but let’s just say Kouyou isn’t going to be the most thrilled about this entire situation…”  
   
Chuckles left the raven’s lips, and Yuu found himself letting slip several coughs afterwards, his dehydrated throat getting the better of him. Takanori noticed how weak the raven was getting, and left the embrace for a little while to grab a bottle of water conveniently placed on the coffee table beside them. The brunet hurriedly untightened the bottle cap and neared the bottle of water to Yuu’s lips, encouraging the raven to take gentle sips slowly.  
   
Yuu looked up to him with a thankful look as he sipped the water slowly, his face still looking very much pale and sick. Takanori bit his lip in worry as he watched the raven-haired with a concerned look, wondering if he should call for Kouyou to come to take a look at the raven.  
   
“You’re scaring me, Yuu,” Takanori asked, lowering his voice, his eyes fretful. “Are you feeling alright?”  
   
Yuu nodded with his mouth full of water, quickly gulping it down soon after, his tone of voice sounding much clearer now. “I am. I’m fine, Taka. I’m just… I’m just so happy you’re here. I’m so happy we’re best friends. Our friendship means the most to me.”  
   
Takanori gave him a strange look, but his lips still broke wide into a smile to Yuu all the same.  
   
“You’re really in love with me, aren’t you?” He teased, his arms bringing Yuu into another hug. Yuu simply laughed and nodded, snuggling further into the brunet’s embrace. He missed bantering with Takanori so much.  
   
“By the way, Taka… never get a perm.”  
   
Yuu didn’t want to think of meeting _that_ version of twenty-eight year old Takanori ever again.  
   
“Wha–” Takanori laughed at the randomness of it all. “Hey, I was _actually_ thinking of getting one, ya know, and this is throwing me off my plans a little.”  
   
Yuu sighed. “Well, OK, fine, if you really want a perm, I can’t stop you. But you’re not allowed to ever stay back in the office to fuck my fiancé. Got it? I’m watching you…”  
   
Takanori cocked an eyebrow up, questioning Yuu’s sudden outbursts, deciding to go along with it and tease the raven even further. “Hey, how did you know I had plans to fuck my way to the top?”  
   
Yuu’s eyes narrowed into slits, and he was instantly huffing, pulling back slightly to meet Takanori’s gaze face-to-face. “ _Taka_!”  
   
Takanori chortled. “Geez, lighten up a little. I’m not touching Kouyou, don’t worry. He’s my best friend’s fiancé! I’d rather have _you_ than him. Besides, I feel like him and I wouldn’t even last ten seconds.”  
   
“Well, Kouyou’s very attractive and romantic,” Yuu sniffed, looking to Takanori with utmost suspicion. “And very rich. I can see the appeal.”  
   
Takanori laughed at the absurdity of it all. “Yuu, how is it that the first thing you tell me after you’ve woken up from fainting is to make sure I’m _not_ fucking your fiancé?”  
   
Yuu huffed. “ _No_ , the first thing I did was tell you I love you.”  
   
Takanori giggled, nodding his head. “Actually, yeah, that’s true. You love me the most.” And then the brunet was squeezing Yuu in his hold, taking deep breaths of the raven’s scent. “My baby Yuu! I love you, too. Don’t worry. I promise never to fuck Kouyou. I love my Akira too much.”  
   
Yuu looked to him with that mention, a very firm and grave look on his face as he recalled how Akira had ended up like after Takanori left his side. “Taka, you know that Aki loves you, right? You can’t ever doubt Akira’s love for you. That man _loves_ you to death. And he’s going to turn into a sad drunkard if you ever dump him. He’s going to live in an insect-infested shabby flat. Don’t do that to him. _Please_.”  
   
Takanori stared to him, confounded. “Uh, Yuu…” How was he supposed to let Yuu know he was descending into insanity without hurting his best friend’s feelings? Perhaps Kouyou’s idea to get a doctor to come down and give Yuu a check-up was a good one.  
   
“I’m serious! You have to promise me that you won’t ever leave Akira,” Yuu frowned, gazing into Takanori’s eyes intensely, grabbing Takanori by his two shoulders. “He’ll be super depressed and become an alcoholic, I swear. Don’t do that to him!”  
   
“Yuuuuu!” Takanori whined, pushing him playfully away. “You’re being weird again.”  
   
Yuu let out a sigh, then brought Takanori back into a super invasive hug. “I just want my loved ones to be happy.”  
   
“Hey, did I miss the party?”  
   
The vice-president had come stumbling through the office door, carrying a ton of grocery bags on both arms, two in each hand. He was also hugging two more extra bags to his chest, looking as though he’d gone grocery shopping for a big weekend beach party. He was panting slightly as he lumbered into the room, lowering the bags clumsily down onto the coffee table, cheekily meeting Takanori’s eyes as he did so.  
   
“Aki!!!!” Takanori called happily, grinning widely as his older lover sauntered over to the sofa to plant a kiss thoughtfully against Takanori’s head. Takanori’s face beamed, glowing happily at the romantic gesture. Yuu’s heart felt at peace, witnessing the love and affection between the couple. He knew he wouldn’t have anything to worry about, for now.  
   
He was still slightly wary of Akira, though… Have you ever had a bad dream and couldn’t ever look at someone the same way for a couple of days? Yeah, that was what Yuu felt like now – except _so much worse._  
   
“Hey, Yuu,” Akira turned his attention to the raven-haired, moving a hand up to wipe at the sweat rolling down the side of his face as he greeted Yuu cheerfully. “Nice to see you’re looking much better now. I got some food for you from the supermarket nearby–” the older man gestured to the grocery bags. “–uh, Takanori made me get them for you. He said you might be craving just about anything when you awoke, so I had to get anything you possibly ate. Which was quite a list, actually, thanks to Takanori.”  
   
“Don’t pin the blame onto me, you needed some exercise anyway,” Takanori wrinkled his nose up adorably. “Yuu must be _so_ hungry! Kouyou’s been starving him. You need to scold Kouyou, too, by the way. Your CEO best friend’s a freak.”  
   
“The man’s just doing his job, Taka,” Akira sighed, chiding, knowing that Kouyou’s work was very demanding, and often required the blond to expect the same from his subordinates. Takanori folded his arms, shaking his head at Akira’s defense.  
   
“He’s a _monster_ ,” Takanori pointed out.  
   
Yuu leaned his head up to Akira’s face at this very moment to catch a whiff of the older man’s breath. Akira and Takanori blinked, wide-eyed, towards Yuu, wondering what the living hell the raven-haired was doing.  
   
“Suzuki,” Yuu started, not even bothering with his usual _Akira_. The vice-president was taken aback by the unfriendly tone of voice and cold, aloof look in Yuu’s eyes as he spoke to him, but Akira didn’t question it. “You haven’t been drinking, have you?”  
   
Akira chuckled nervously, appalled at how pissed Yuu was looking at him. What the hell had he done to offend the raven? “Not that I know of, Yuu… No, I don’t think I drank alcohol of late.”  
   
“Good,” Yuu withdrew from Akira’s personal space, clucking his tongue at the same time. “Akira, you’re going to have to watch the alcohol. It’s bad for your health. And body.” The raven eyed Akira’s physique with a critical look.  
   
“Wouldn’t want to lose any of your guns now, do you?”  
   
Akira’s face went white as sheets at the insinuation, and he turned to face Takanori immediately with a horrified look.  
   
“Baby, am I getting… fat?”  
   
“Yuu’s just acting weird again,” Takanori sighed, raising a hand up to pat understandingly at the raven’s head. “Yuu, sweetie, I think you need some food. And sleep.”  
   
“Akira, I just want to get some things straight,” Yuu cleared his throat, gazing up stubbornly into the vice-president’s eyes. Akira grew increasingly uncomfortable at how strongly Yuu felt about the subject. “My name’s Yuu, alright? Not princess, not babydoll, not anything else. It’s Y-U-U–”  
   
“Yuu, _princess_ , are you awake?”  
   
_Kouyou._  
   
Yuu forgot everything else the second he came into the picture. His very ears perked up the moment the blond’s voice floated down to his ear, then he heard the sliding of the glass door to the balcony, and several hurried steps making their way to him from the back. And then he felt strong – and most importantly, _familiar_ – arms circle around him from behind the sofa, with Kouyou leaning his lips down to deliver a soft kiss to the side of Yuu’s head as he did so.  
   
“Babydoll, you’re awake…” Kouyou exclaimed gratefully, walking round the sofa to take a good look at his now conscious lover. Takanori scooted over to give Kouyou some space, acknowledging that the CEO must want some time to himself and Yuu now that the raven had finally awakened. Akira tugged the brunet up from the sofa to usher him out the door, taking a hint that Kouyou had to do some serious damage control to save his relationship – and he needed some privacy if he were to do so. Takanori and Akira soon left the room quietly without a sound.  
   
Kouyou sat himself next to Yuu on the sofa, an incredibly apologetic look in his eyes, his arms pulling Yuu close. Yuu couldn’t do anything else but drown in the man’s scent; he smelled exactly like he’d remembered. Kouyou was here, and Kouyou was his, and Yuu had all the opportunities in the world to make it right.  
   
_God,_ Yuu loved the blond so fucking much. And he was right here, holding Yuu rightfully back into his arms.  
   
“I’m so sorry, Yuu,” the older man was murmuring out, holding Yuu as closely as the raven would let him. He was still hesitant, wondering if the raven was still mad at him for having started the argument earlier, but seeing as how Yuu hadn’t pushed him away or yelled at him as of yet, Kouyou grew increasingly daring and grasped Yuu as much as he could. “I got so worried when you collapsed… I’ve never been so afraid. It’s all my fault, princess, I know. Are you feeling okay, now? The doctor’s on his way, so you don’t have to worry. He’ll make sure you’re alright.”  
   
Kouyou’s fingers were brushing through Yuu’s hair as he spoke, his lips longing to inch forward and kiss the raven – though he knew he couldn’t do so, not yet, not when he knew Yuu must still be angry at him.  
   
Yuu couldn’t even remember an ounce of that anger anymore. He’d felt hurt, yes, and slightly heartbroken that Kouyou could be so rough with him, but if he’d learned anything from the other universe, it was that Kouyou’s career was very much a part of him, and Yuu couldn’t just take that away from him. At the end of it all, Kouyou still loved Yuu to death, and the man was willing to do anything to keep Yuu by his side. Yuu couldn’t just keep harping on his own feelings in every matter, and exclude the blond’s. Because Kouyou has his own priorities, his own goals, his own wants in life, too, and if Yuu wanted to be a deserving enough lover, he needed to respect all of that, while accepting that Kouyou would still love him from the bottom of his heart all the same.  
   
“I’m not mad,” Yuu said softly, eyes shimmering up to the older man, a small smile tugging at his lips. “Kouyou, you don’t have to worry about what happened earlier. It was nothing.”  
   
“I know it hurt you,” Kouyou said, regretfully. He was very much angry at himself, and he was lowering his eyes irksomely, unable to hold a straight gaze with the raven, knowing he was in the wrong.  
   
“I know I did, and I have to take responsibility for it. It’s just so hard, sometimes, for me to be able to maintain that right balance between working as efficiently as I can, and treating you as gently as possible, and I’m not good at it at all. I want to pamper and spoil you, and kiss you and play with you, but I can’t do that at work, especially since it’s been a hard couple of weeks. And you’ve been working so hard at work for me, and I _do_ see that, but I was just frustrated and I… I said some things I didn’t mean, and it hurt you.”  
   
And Kouyou looked so disappointed at himself, for that, so much so that it was wrenching at Yuu’s heart a little.  
   
“Kou, I’m not angry anymore, it’s okay,” Yuu whispered out, raising his arms up to surround Kouyou’s neck and pull him close. “I get it. I really do. I was wrong, too, for calling you heartless for being so demanding in your work. Kouyou, I fell in love with you because of who you are. You’re such a perfectionist, you’re so smart, so intelligent, so capable, and it’s expected that you have a strong work ethic you don’t like having messed up. You’re not different at work. It’s still the same you. And I couldn’t see this before, Kouyou, and I’m so sorry.”  
   
Kouyou lifted his head up apprehensively to the raven, guilty eyes holding his gaze, still not daring to believe that Yuu had forgiven him so easily. “It’s just… You told me you didn’t want to be with me anymore, Yuu, and I… I really can’t deal with that. Not now. Not… not like this. I can’t lose you just because of this. I love you so much, and you couldn’t even see it, and I…” the blond’s eyes flew shut for a moment, inhaling in a breath dejectedly.  
   
“I made a mistake, for yelling at you like that, and I accept that it’s all my fault. But I can’t just lose you, not when you mean so much to me. We’re going to get married so soon, and _this_ happens, and I really don’t know how I’ll take it if you tell me the wedding’s off. I… I _have_ to marry you. I don’t want you to find anyone else better than me…”  
   
And then the blond was burying his head into Yuu’s shoulder, keeping his eyes tightly shut. “I’m still the same Takashima Kouyou that has loved you from day one.”  
   
Yuu’s heart softened a huge ton; Kouyou’s words were so reminiscent of the upset Kouyou he’d seen in his dream, and he never wanted to see Kouyou so brokenhearted, ever.  
   
“And I’m still the same Shiroyama Yuu that loves you,” Yuu murmured softly, his hand in Kouyou’s hair. The older man’s shoulders visibly relaxed at that. “Kou, I’m not calling the wedding off. I’m never going to find anyone else better than you.”  
   
And Yuu knew now his decision to marry Kouyou was right. It wasn’t like he had ever thought it to be wrong; but for a second there in the midst of their argument, Yuu had thought he’d have been better off without Kouyou’s ring on his finger, and he was dead wrong. Raising his hand up to take a look at the beautifully carved rose diamond ring on his finger, Yuu realized that he didn’t want anything else in its place. Kouyou’s ring had always meant to be on his hand, and there was no otherwise. Not Takanori, not Christine, not anyone else.  
   
“You frightened me for awhile there,” Kouyou managed a tired smile, pulling back from the embrace, gazing deeply into Yuu’s eyes. The blond appeared so much more relieved, and immensely thankful his raven lover seemed so much less angry at him than before.  
   
“When you collapsed right before my eyes, I didn’t know what to do with myself, I – I was so scared. All of it is my fault. I shouldn’t have stressed you out. Takanori’s right; I’m overly demanding, and I must have been overworking you. You’re only so young, and…” Kouyou chewed his lower lip. “You’re only supposed to be an intern, and I’m taking advantage of you. I shouldn’t have let you work here. All of these wouldn’t have happened.”  
   
“I just forgot to eat lunch, that’s all,” Yuu sighed, shaking his head, though he was liking how protective and overly caring Kouyou was being to him. Not that Kouyou wasn’t ever; but it was nice to have it back again, in a world where Kouyou actually was _his_ , and not doing all of these in the secrecy of a club. “You haven’t eaten lunch, too, you know.”  
   
“I’m physically stronger than you,” Kouyou frowned. “And I’m used to working like this. You’re not. You’re supposed to be eating at nice restaurants, and having enough leisure time to yourself.”  
   
Yuu smiled. “I’m not a sugar baby anymore, Kou.”  
   
“You don’t have to be, just for me to spoil you,” Kouyou insisted. “And I’m not making you work anymore. From this very second onwards. You’re fired.”  
   
Yuu sulked up to his lover. “I got fired?”  
   
“You are,” Kouyou said firmly. “It’s for your health’s sake, Yuu. I don’t want these fainting episodes to become a normal thing.”  
   
Yuu sighed. “It’s only happened one time. Besides, you still need a secretary, don’t you? You can’t just–”  
   
“Akira’s phoned Chiaki. She’ll be good to come back in a week or two,” Kouyou informed. “I don’t want you working here anymore, alright?”  
   
Yuu frowned at the news. Kouyou was fast. “I still have a week or two, at least.”  
   
Kouyou wore a pained expression at the thought of Yuu still coming for work. “You don’t need to work these weeks. Just go home and rest.”  
   
“And how are you going to stop me if I still turn up to work, anyway?” Yuu teased, earning him a glare from his lover.  
   
“You’re so stubborn,” Kouyou said grumpily, though he knew he couldn’t do anything about it if Yuu was so adamant on staying on for a couple more days. “I don’t know how I’m going to deal with you.”  
   
“I thought you said earlier on that you couldn’t bear to lose me,” Yuu sang, and the delight on his face was enough to make Kouyou smile just slightly again. Yuu was _so_ cute.  
   
“I want to be annoyed by you forever,” Kouyou kissed the side of Yuu’s mouth, his eyes closing shut as he did so. “I want to be the only man you’ll annoy like this, forever.”  
   
Yuu giggled, and nuzzled his cheek against his. “You’re so masochistic, wanting to be tortured by me like this.”  
   
Kouyou laughed. “Masochistic? Do _you_ really think you’re qualified to be using that term?”  
   
“What,” Yuu’s tone turned sour. “Now what is _that_ supposed to mean?”  
   
Kouyou smiled angelically to him. “Nothing.”  
   
“Asshole.”  
   
“Ow,” the blond said, this time with a pout. “I have feelings, too.”  
   
“You’re _so_ sensitive,” Yuu huffed, but Kouyou was chuckling and gazing sweetly into Yuu’s eyes anyway, unable to take his gaze off him.  
   
“What?” Yuu moped, hating how Kouyou always seemed to fall into these kind of dazes and helpless trances every now and then, looking at Yuu as if Kouyou had never seen anyone like him before. Kouyou was, _always,_ so unnecessarily romantic. It always sent Yuu’s heart tingling in a little dance.  
   
“Your eyes are so beautiful,” Kouyou admitted, unable to hide the reason he was so distracted with the sight of Yuu.  
   
Yuu thought he could cry.  
   
“I thought Takanori’s eyes were better,” Yuu said, feeling his lips curve up in a shy, bashful smile. And he knew Kouyou wouldn’t get the Takanori reference, but _god_ , Yuu was so happy he could die. He was, once again, reminded of the pain and anguish he’d dealt with in the universe where he couldn’t have Kouyou, but now he had everything. And his eyes were the only ones here that would ever captivate the blond. Not Takanori’s.  
   
“Takanori can’t even hold a candle to you, what are you talking about,” Kouyou whispered, gently leaning his face to the side, silencing Yuu’s every doubt and worry with the very touch of their lips.  
   
Yuu was more than ready for this.  
   
The raven-haired allowed that warm tongue to slip tenderly into his mouth, Kouyou’s arms wrapping urgently around Yuu’s back as he did so. They must have kissed a million times by now, but each time it still felt as intoxicating and as sensational as the very first. He felt the blond play lightly with his long raven hair, clawing playfully at the strands as he pushed Yuu’s lips closer to his. _God,_ Kouyou smelled so great. Always so manly, so chivalrous, so gentlemanly. And Kouyou kissed him gently as usual, but with the right amount of vigour and _oomph_ to give Yuu that electrifying spark that always made Yuu forget himself.  
   
And Yuu had never felt more in love.  
   
Happy endings didn’t come free in any universe, and sometimes you might accidentally take a wrong turn or two and find yourself lost at a door you _hadn’t_ wanted to end up at; but sometimes all it took was simply re-tracing your steps and understanding what had gone wrong in the first place. And _then_ you might just fall into the arms of a charming CEO, who would never do anything to intentionally hurt you, or break your heart. He’d do everything and anything in his power to protect you, to make sure you’re safe, to ensure that smile on your face.  
   
And you’d hold his heart in your hands, and your heart in his, and it’d be perfect.  
   
In this lifetime, Kouyou had always been his home.  
   
~  
   
After all that smooching, his doctor’s check-up soon took place, where the doctor informed Kouyou of Yuu’s supposed low blood pressure. And when Yuu had been the only one bursting into laughter at the revelation, finding the correlation between _this_ and his dream way too weird, the rest of the people in the room had stared at Yuu oddly, with Takanori sneaking a low whisper to Kouyou, telling him: “ _I think you need to fix Yuu up with a brain MRI scan… just in case, you know, you never can be too sure with these things”._  
   
Yuu eventually found time in the midst of the entire absurdity of a situation to locate his phone and scroll down his contacts, finding a certain _Tanabe Yutaka_ deep within his contacts to send a friendly text to. That alternate universe had given him many signs, and he knew this was the most obvious one of them all. He badly missed his old best friend, and he knew there had always been pent up guilt inside of him for not having been the friend Yuu always thought he was supposed to be for Yutaka. And he wanted to know how Yutaka was doing, and he wanted to know Yutaka was fine.  
   
**_Yuu:_** _Hey… Yutaka, you there?_  
   
It didn’t take long for the raven to get a reply.  
   
**_Yutaka:_** _Yuu?_  
   
He hadn’t changed his number, even after all these years. Yuu was smiling thankfully to his phone at the sight of his text, knowing that Yutaka would always be one step away from him, somehow.  
   
**_Yuu:_** _Yes, it’s me… :) Want to grab a cup of coffee sometime? I miss you_  
   
There was a hesitant pause, right before –  
   
**_Yutaka:_** _Sure, Yuu… I missed you too :)_  
   
Yuu then let out the breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding, and he smiled so widely until his eyes crinkled all up. There was no better feeling in the world than knowing everything was going to be just fine, after everything that’d happened.  
   
Everything was going to be just fine, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)))))))))
> 
> poor Akira, LOL, Yuu you need to stop glaring at him and making him self-conscious. you also may have detected a couple of adorable Rukaoi moments in this chapter.................:D also I'm a sucker for sensitive fragile Kouyou, and it shows a lot. oooops. 
> 
> Comments are so loved as usual <3


	64. the Office XIV

Whoever came up with the term ‘Monday blues’ clearly must be alien to the concept of morning sex.  
  
… _Or,_ in Yuu’s case, meant getting fucked hard over every piece of furniture, _ever_.  
  
It was as if Yuu’s fainting episode in the office had flipped a switch in his dear fiancé’s depraved brain, triggering all the pent-up sexual rage – that Kouyou must have been holding in for the past three weeks now – to be unleashed at one complete go. In short, the blond CEO had morphed into a savage _monster_ overnight _,_ with claws whose clutches were so firm Yuu couldn’t escape from even if he tried. Yuu wasn’t complaining, really; hell, he’d rather liked the fantasy of surrendering helplessly into Kouyou’s grasp, just like a stranded and captive princess, unable to do anything but be subservient to his brutally handsome captor. They’d even roleplayed many times in the bedroom, playing the part of captor and captive a little _too_ convincingly – with Yuu begging for leniency with tearful, doe-like eyes, and Kouyou ripping Yuu’s expensive satin nighties into shreds multiple times – and _fuck_ , Yuu had loved it. Yuu relished in being treated roughly, Yuu sought _pleasure_ in being held against his will.  
  
Weeks of continuous overtime and zero room for any lovemaking to take place must have fried some part of Kouyou’s brain somewhere. Kouyou had come _this_ close to losing Yuu to overexhaustion in the office, and so he vowed never to take the beautiful raven-haired for granted ever again, and reflected earnestly on his actions and treatment towards Yuu. The ultimate (and most reasonable) conclusion was that the tension between them had only built at work because they hadn’t any other place to express it otherwise; when they’d always been so used to fucking like bunnies the moment Kouyou came home from work to Yuu in his penthouse.  
  
And so, in typical Kouyou fashion and according to his logic, they began having sex. Again. A lot. A crazy amount. Everyday. At least ten rounds daily. Yuu thought he would even pass out halfway sometimes.  
  
Yuu was in no position to turn down such heated pleasure, especially when it was being offered to him so readily like this. He couldn’t deny the fact that Kouyou was as wild – and _good_ – in bed as he was, and their sexual chemistry was _fantastic_. Mornings now began with some hard fucking over the mirror as they slowly got dressed, or intense blowjobs they’d give to each other right before their regularly scheduled breakfast. Kouyou wouldn’t let them leave the house until they’d both cum twice; and even then, the older man was always adamant to stay longer for more, not completely satisfied with only a few simple rounds of furious sex.  
  
In today’s news, it seemed that getting into the _soixante-neuf_ – or more commonly known as the sexual position _sixty-nine_ – was becoming their thing. Yuu had woken up on the bed, lying on his stomach with rather prominent morning wood, to Kouyou’s tongue eating the fuck out of his ass; and had sleepily requested for Kouyou to scoot over to switch positions with him, crawling over Kouyou’s fit body instead.  
  
Which led Yuu to here.  
  
Yuu didn’t know how he was still able to vocalise any kinds of moans with such a huge dick down his throat, but he used it to his every advantage. Still stuck in a post-sleep dreamy haze, the younger man found it was difficult to think about anything else but the pulsing organ in his mouth, twitching every single time Yuu unconsciously let slip a loud, verbal moan. Yuu had done it unintentionally at first; he wasn’t too concentrated on actively putting on a show for the blond, but the first sluttish moan had slipped out when Kouyou’s tongue inside of him rubbed against a hard muscle, and he’d felt Kouyou’s veiny cock make a _very_ conscious throb in his mouth. The CEO got turned on so easily, and Yuu didn’t even have to try. _Fuck_. Kouyou would always have it _so_ bad for him.  
  
It was incredibly hard to put on too many antics, anyway. Yuu’s ass was still very sensitive from last night’s rough fucking – Kouyou had fucked him in many impossible positions, all against a wall – and the raven’s knees immediately went weak whenever Kouyou wedged his wet, warm tongue in his entrance and swirled it deep inside of Yuu. Yuu’s body was already naturally so _responsive_ , and every tingly wave of pleasure Kouyou bestowed upon him just sent him over the edge.  
  
With pink, blushing cheeks and hollowed out cheeks, Yuu worked diligently on Kouyou’s cock, flicking his tongue over the head, making Kouyou jolt slightly when he licked up the precum beading at the tip. Yuu wasn’t in the mood for much teasing this morning; he would envelop Kouyou’s cock completely into the wet heat of his mouth, and slide his head down until the head was hitting against the back of his throat. He’d feel Kouyou slip his tongue out of his asshole uncontrollably right then and subsequently part his lips open to groan a loud –  
  
“ _Aahh… Yuu… f–fuck!”_  
  
– losing entire control of himself, and it’d fill Yuu up with a bunch of silent snickers and triumphant glee. He _loved_ it when he gained the upperhand with Kouyou, even if only for a few seconds, to hear that he too, could reduce the older man into a mess, and bring to him pleasure from his wildest dreams. Then Yuu would bring his head slowly back up, allowing Kouyou’s weeping cock to drag deliciously along the the interior of his mouth, before lowering his head back down again, until he was bobbing his head up and down furiously onto Kouyou’s thick flesh, making sure he was allowing Kouyou’s cock to fuck his mouth non-stop, just the way the dominant CEO liked it.  
  
The _faster_ and _harder_ and _quicker_ Yuu sucked against his cock, he could feel every bit of Kouyou’s control slip away, and his palms grip tighter against Yuu’s quivering thighs in the process. Kouyou’s hold grew stronger and harder, as if trying to gain back some sort of control in the process, even if Yuu was certain the CEO was already creeping quickly to his pleasure limit.  
  
“ _Mmmfff… Daaadddyyymmffff…_ ” Yuu sighed out sensually, strings of saliva dripping down the sides of his lips as he nuzzled Kouyou’s dick. _Fuck_ , Yuu was a complete animal. And he had the cheek to label Kouyou the same. The way Yuu sucked cock clearly showed Kouyou the raven-haired loved cock; he was an expert in making his partner feel good, _and_ make himself feel good for doing so.  
  
With closed eyes and a trembling asshole, Yuu was evidently enjoying the entire process. He didn’t bother holding in his whines for more, and made sure to wriggle his ass backwards to meet Kouyou’s tongue whenever the man sank his tongue back inside of him, as if saying _Right here, Daddy_! Kouyou never missed a spot; he wanted Yuu to feel every inch of his hot and slippery tongue, licking every hard nub or muscle that came his way, producing a ton of slick, panting noises in return.  
  
Yuu could _die_. The raven moaned over and over, thrusting his mouth up and down Kouyou’s big cock, whilst enjoying the mindblowing sensation of Kouyou’s tongue worshipping every inch of his insides. Yuu was in heaven. His fiancé was always such a _pervert_ …  
  
A couple more thrusts, and Kouyou seemed to decide he wanted to cum inside of the younger man’s ass, instead of his mouth. In a swift movement, he rolled his lover’s lithe body over and switched them both to a missionary position instead, liking it much better when Yuu was under him and he could look at Yuu’s face in its entirety.  
  
_Fuck,_ Yuu always looked so goddamn arousing. Kouyou loved how Yuu decided to keep his hair long just for him, because the way Yuu’s raven hair strands stuck to his face whenever he got so sweaty always fired the blond up so much he was unable to control himself. And Yuu knew _exactly_ the kind of effect he had on the older man. The princess raised a finger to his battered lips, biting at the tip of his nail provocatively as he fluttered his innocent-looking, mistified eyes to a half-lidded close, gazing up at Kouyou leaning up over him with a face that just screamed ‘ _fuck me’._ Kouyou let out the breath he hadn’t even realized he’d been holding, feeling his erect cock twitch at the very sight. The blond couldn’t believe he’d had the privilege of having those bruised, cherry-red lips suck his cock this whole entire time; those plump lips were _born_ with the sole purpose to suck cock. And to trail his eyes down Yuu’s slender, milky-white frame with his curvy hips and his flat stomach adorning the silver navel piercing, _fuck_ …  
  
How could Kouyou even dare to dream of losing such a seductress when just the mere flutter of Yuu’s eyes could send Kouyou’s cock acting with a mind of its own? How could Kouyou ever think of _even_ yelling at Yuu back in that office, risking the possibility of never being able to worship Yuu’s luscious body ever again? It was such a wonder Kouyou managed to attain such beauty in his hands… Had Kouyou been just a few years too late, he’d have possibly lost Yuu to another man who might have gotten the opportunity to see a naked Yuu like this and fuck him on the daily instead. And to even _think_ about another man owning Yuu, in ways that Kouyou deserved to, made the blond extremely furious. He wanted to own Yuu completely, he wanted Yuu to belong to him _only._ It was funny how even after all these years, Kouyou’s possessiveness still hadn’t come to lax. And perhaps it would never, not when Yuu could so easily seduce anyone with his face, his voice, his body, his _everything_. Yuu had landed himself in dangerous hands…  
  
The moment Kouyou’s hands move forth to pull Yuu’s thighs apart in one rough manoeuvre, the raven’s fingers instinctively clench in to the white sheets beneath him, biting his lower lip at the thought of Kouyou entering him already. And then the blond was grabbing at his thick cock and leaning himself forward, pulling Yuu’s body closer to him at the same time. The tip of his naked cock brushed against Yuu’s slim thigh, and the brief sensation was enough to send the raven shaking. Yuu couldn’t wait to be _fucked_ already, despite how sore and sensitive he already was from last night. Yuu just wanted to explode into a bundle of pleasures, and, ideally, pass out mid-orgasm… Yuu just wanted to show Daddy just how much of a whore he was.  
  
“ _Daddyyy,_ ” Yuu mewled, looking up at Kouyou from underneath his long lashes, stained with deliberate tears. His intoxicated face bred even more of an animalistic urge inside of Kouyou to monopolize the raven, wanting Yuu to know _exactly_ what he did to _Daddy_ whenever he made such lewd expressions on purpose.  
  
“Look at you,” Kouyou grunted, narrowing his eyes down below to the twenty-three year old writhing powerlessly underneath of him. Perhaps there was always something about Yuu’s ability to manipulate Kouyou through his seductive innocence – that he _always_ played up to get his way with the blond CEO, and perhaps Yuu’s love to relinquish complete control to his possessive lover made the entire relationship work between them. Yuu just _loved_ being looked upon at the helpless prey ready to be devoured, didn’t he? And Kouyou loved being the one to eat him right up…  
  
“Look at _me_ ,” Yuu giggled ditzily to himself, cupping a hand over his lips. It was as if he was acknowledging the fact that _yes,_ he knew how fucking _hot_ and irresistible he was looking to Kouyou right now, and that _yes_ , he was playing everything up on purpose to rile his heated lover up even more. Kouyou would never know what to do with him.  
  
“You whine so much about being sore from being fucked day and night, but I think you enjoy _being_ sore, don’t you?” Kouyou muttered in an accusatory tone, bending over to plant a gentle kiss atop Yuu’s forehead. Yuu winced in response, but allowed Kouyou this one romantic gesture.  
  
And then Kouyou spotted out of the corner of his eye – a loose neck tie – lying atop the bedside dresser next to them. Oh, they had tossed that there last night, hadn’t they? They were always so impatient when it came to fucking each other’s brains out they never gave much thought to the kind of mess they’d leave everywhere. _Well, then_. Might as well put the neck tie to good use.  
  
Yuu turned grumpy once he realized what was happening; but by the time he even dared to vocalise a whimper of protest, Kouyou had already raised both the raven’s arms up high above his head and tied his wrists together in a perfect knot. Yuu never really knew where Kouyou got his rope-knotting skills from.  
  
“You’re always so _bad_ , tying me up,” Yuu pouted, feeling his wrists start to ache already. It would be a long day in the office later for _sure_ , when Kouyou was already pulling out all stops to make sure Yuu would do as little as possible when he was getting fucked. “You’ve done that three times this week. You’re such a control maniac…!”  
  
But of course, protesting against Kouyou’s controlling tendencies was just part and parcel of their whole game, and Yuu knew _exactly_ how to play his part as the whiny, humiliated princess; always being restrained by his mad captor prince. Because Kouyou will always do whatever he wants with Yuu, won’t he? Kouyou will always take Yuu against his will, and ravage him to pieces, and fuck Yuu until Yuu was a begging and crying mess, until Yuu had learnt not to be such a _brat_ …  
  
_Fuck_ , it all turned Yuu on too much.  
  
“Babydoll can cum without touching yourself,” Kouyou uttered with a straight face, his penetrative gaze falling upon Yuu’s soft features. “Especially when you’re so sore and sensitive. You can do that for _daddy_ , can’t you?”  
  
“I’m never allowed to touch myself,” Yuu mewled loudly, languidly stretching his body across the bed, lifting his hips up momentarily for a second. Kouyou eyed his naked body lustfully, admiring the way Yuu’s slender frame stretched so flexibly and effortlessly. “You’re so _mean_! You just like watching me suffer…”  
  
“Don’t put it that way, princess,” Kouyou sighed, an entertained smile tugging at his lips. “I just like seeing you _beg_.”  
  
Trust the man himself to admit it.  
  
_Sadist_.  
  
And then he enters him. Yuu’s hands above him go back to gripping as hard as he is able to whilst being restrained at the sheets, his eyes slinking shut once he feels the initial breach of Kouyou’s large cock. How is it that Yuu never tires of the initial feeling of Kouyou pushing himself into him, no matter how many times they’ve fucked? It’s always the same, warm feeling, that overwhelms Yuu and hurls him into a huge array of emotions; and always sends Yuu needy for more. He flutters his eyes up, and meets the impassioned gaze of his lover, turned dark with lust, and blinded completely by overwhelming love. Above all this, Kouyou does this because he _loves_ him, and sex can’t get any better than this.  
  
Kouyou kept his eyes locked with Yuu’s with every slow thrust, parting his lips slightly to let slip satisfied growls, knowing his younger lover loved listening to his sounds of pleasure equally as much as he did for Yuu. He fucked Yuu for a couple steady beats before deciding to elevate the pace – knowing fully well that there was no point taking things slow and dragging it out when they’d just fucked the night before, and would probably be fucking again in a couple hours’ time. They had begun a routine of keeping their foreplay candid and short, not seeing much point in it when every brush or caress of their skin against the other’s was tantalizing enough to get them both heated up.  
  
“ _Nnn…_ that’s it, _Daddy_ , fuck me good with that thick, hard cock…” Yuu moaned out contentedly, his arms still held up high above him, his hips being forced to lift a few inches off the bed with every speedy thrust. Yuu had long resigned to the fact that his body was similar to that of a ragdoll’s, always ready to be used and grabbed at by Kouyou’s strong arms as he pleased. Kouyou had all the power over him in this situation… Yuu, on the other hand, could only cum by Kouyou’s administration, and feel pleasure whenever Kouyou slid his cock back inside of him. The decibel of Yuu’s moans paced well with the intensity and speed of Kouyou’s thrusts, growing increasingly louder and higher in pitch as time went by. Yuu was so fucking thankful they lived on the highest floor and had the place all to themselves; they would _never_ do well with neighbours when Yuu was used to making all these loud sexual noises.  
  
“Fuck, princess, you know _Daddy_ can’t resist you when you cry out like that,” Kouyou groaned, burying himself deeper with hard thrusts, fucking into the hot body beneath him feverishly, unable to will himself to stop. Yuu kept moaning out these whorish, exasperated, whiny mewls, looking at Kouyou through _such_ defenceless eyes, and squirming his body in such a playful way it only made Kouyou want to fuck him harder.  
  
Yuu giggled for a bit at how easily Kouyou was losing his sense of control before him, then realized his mistake, and went back to gazing up at Kouyou with chaste, demure-looking eyes, chewing at his own pink lips and bruising it even further in front of the CEO.  
  
And then Kouyou gripped at his hips, hard enough to bruise and not caring, and slammed into the younger man just the way he knew would make Yuu see white.  
  
Yuu’s face immediately gave way to fervent pleasure, with his eyes falling to a uncontrollable close. A loud, sweet cry was elicited from his mouth, and for a moment Yuu couldn’t think. Kouyou watched Yuu through a sort of dizzy arousal, knowing he’d effectively fucked Yuu to the point of silencing his flirtatious antics and showing him who was _truly_ in power here.  
  
Hint: it wasn’t the poor princess helplessly tied up.  
  
“ _Oh, oh… nnn… t–there… yes… p–please… oh… Daddy…”_  
  
Yuu’s fingers clawed into the cloth of the tie that bound his wrists together, his legs trembling non-stop at the delicious pangs of pleasure that kept running down his skin. Kouyou had no plans to stop; he continued to fuck Yuu ever so viciously, ramming at Yuu’s sweet spot over again and again and again until Yuu’s throat grew raspy from all the heavy moaning. A kind of smug satisfaction overcame the blond CEO when he witnessed precum dribbling down the tip of Yuu’s cock – the raven-haired was so easy to bring to release.  
  
For a quick moment, Kouyou shut his eyes and panted softly to himself, arms gripping his lover by the hips, proceeding to fuck Yuu however and whichever way he liked.  
  
“Mm… _Fuck_ , you feel so tight and good, _princess_ …” he made his own noises of pleasure, breaths coming out hot and heavy, and simply savoured in the feeling of Yuu’s tense, tight walls of muscles squeezing around his burning cock. Hearing Yuu’s dirty moans in the background was a huge plus, and Kouyou only gave it a couple more hard thrusts before it was all over for him. He came hard into Yuu’s slick hole, not pulling out until he was certain he’d emptied every last drop into the raven, then heard Yuu whimper at the sensation, knowing he’d been dirtied wholesomely by his lover again.  
  
Kouyou opened his eyes to a Yuu lying before him with a cock that’s still fully hard, and smirked at the sight. Yuu was obviously not going to cum being fucked by Kouyou’s cock, now that he was already done; and the knowledge sent the raven-haired thrashing on bed, eyeing Kouyou with much bitterness, not liking where this was heading. Kouyou was usually _so_ attentive.  
  
“I haven’t cum yet,” Yuu pointed out, sulking. He knew Kouyou wouldn’t simply leave him like this, but at the same time, he hated having his release denied or prolonged for too long. Kouyou chuckled at his reaction.  
  
“Maybe you don’t deserve to,” Kouyou teased, and it sent Yuu writhing frustratedly in bed once more. _That_ immediately made Kouyou deliver a resounding slap to the side of Yuu’s thigh, his face scrunching up unhappily in response. “Stop moving like that.”  
  
Yuu’s eyes gradually turned bleary. “You’re being mean again.”  
  
Kouyou gazed at him through piercing, threatening eyes, and that shut the raven right up. Yuu whimpered defiantly in response, though, not liking how domineering Kouyou was being without cause for explanation. Kouyou was usually _so_ much more attentive than this… And Yuu really needed to attain his release so bad.  
  
He watched with an aching erection as Kouyou got up and headed over to their dresser, and Yuu’s heart almost popped out of his chest trying to anticipate what Kouyou was going to pull out of that. Kouyou was so unpredictable at times it could get scary. They kept some convenient sex toys in there, just a few ones that they frequently used, and Yuu wondered if Kouyou would employ the use of one to help Yuu cum. Kouyou _couldn’t_ be so heartless… Right?  
  
Kouyou’s face only lit up and his frown overturned back into a smile once the blond found the object he was looking for. Yuu’s eyes immediately narrowed once he saw what the blond had picked up from the dresser, not liking the direction he was taking them in already.  
  
_A buttplug._ And a bejeweled one, of course. One that had actually been made with a _real_ diamond carved into the shape of a heart, attached right at the end. Apparently this was what billionaire CEOs did with their fortune, it seemed: purchase sex toys worth thousands of dollars in order to appease their perverse kinky ass behaviours. Yuu continued gazing at Kouyou with tapered eyes until the older man reached the end of the bed, and pulled Yuu’s legs closer to him. With the buttplug in hand, Kouyou leaned over to in between of Yuu’s thighs, and Yuu managed to distract him – barely – with the erotic wriggling of his body.  
  
“You’re not going to do what I _think_ you’re going to do,” Yuu glared to him, huffing. He knew there was no way out of this, however. Once Kouyou was set on him wearing something lewd, there was no turning back. Either Yuu had to do it, or… _well_ , Yuu had to do it. Yuu always did it, eventually. Making Kouyou unhappy was too much for him, and Yuu always wanted to do his best to appease his lover’s sexual kinks. He found he ended up loving all of them, either way. Kouyou was clearly corrupting his little babydoll…  
  
Kouyou’s eyes glinted smugly with a shit-eating grin on his face as he met Yuu’s eyes. Yuu didn’t think he’d seen the blond look so _fucking_ triumphant in so long.  
  
“You’re going to keep my cum inside of you,” Kouyou said as a matter-of-factly, and then he was spreading Yuu’s thighs apart, and prodding the buttplug as gently as possible to Yuu’s entrance. Trails of cum were still leaking out of Yuu’s tight asshole, and Yuu found he had to throw his head back against the bed as he felt the cold, metal sensation of the buttplug ease slowly into him. It wasn’t a new sensation, but it’d take some getting used to, still. _Fuck,_ there was something about Kouyou when he was so determined to claim Yuu as his and _his_ only, often re-enforcing such a fact through means like this. Kouyou was _horrible_.  
  
“You’ll do it for me, won’t you, _princess_? I’ve wanted you to do this for so long… Keep complete evidence of me, being inside of you, for an entire day. I want you to feel _my_ cum every single second, minute, hour. I want you to _remember_ that you belong to me,” Kouyou’s voice had dropped so low at this point, Yuu wasn’t sure if Kouyou was still speaking to him, or reaffirming those particular thoughts to himself. Kouyou had never looked more eager and excited by the prospect of Yuu keeping his cum inside of him. It was so perverse it was almost… _hot_.  
  
“Now no man can touch you when they see you’ve already been so thoroughly defiled by me… You understand me, don’t you, princess?”  
  
Yuu finished off the entire process with a soft moan, still feeling very much worn out and sore as Kouyou pushed the bejeweled buttplug deep inside of him. He could _feel_ the hot streams of cum still kept tightly inside of him, alright; evidence that he belonged to Kouyou, and no other. Yuu felt so full he thought he would burst… This was no good at all. How was he supposed to go through the rest of the day when the knowledge of being full of Kouyou’s warmth made his dick _so_ hard already?  
  
Speaking of…  
  
“Fine. Yuu will wear it if Daddy lets me cum,” the raven whined frustratedly, sulking up to the older man.  
  
Kouyou laughed at his words, then nodded in reply, liking how compliant Yuu already was to his ‘little’ request.  
  
… _Not_ that it was much of a request to begin with.  
  
“Daddy will let you cum,” Kouyou cooed sweetly, leaning himself up over Yuu so as to untie the smaller man’s wrists with a swift pull of the knot. He took the opportunity to plant a sweet kiss atop Yuu’s hair, fondfully gazing towards his raven-haired lover, appreciative of how understanding Yuu was when it came to his savage kinks.  
  
“On one condition.”  
  
Yuu’s eyes turned to slits, and he pulled a long face to his lover. There was _more_?!  
  
“I want to see you touch yourself when you’re like this,” Kouyou grinned. Yuu’s cheeks instinctively swelled red – Kouyou was _so_ demanding. Of course he’d expect Yuu to do something like that to end off their little morning sex escapade. “The feeling of being so full of another man’s cum… You love it, don’t you?”  
  
Kouyou’s words and lecherous stare was beginning to make Yuu feel embarrassed and rather self-conscious. The raven-haired man turned his head to the side, trying to keep his reddening cheeks to himself. It was bad enough Kouyou had done _this_ to Yuu… And now he was waiting to watch Yuu put on a show for him with the buttplug on.  
  
“Princess, we don’t have all day,” Kouyou sang, keeping his dark eyes focused on Yuu’s bashful face. “You want to cum, don’t you?”  
  
Yuu couldn’t do anything else but nod quietly, keeping his eyes down on the sheets. He couldn’t figure out why he was _so_ shy all of a sudden, when he’d basically been acting like a slut when Kouyou was busy fucking him… Yuu never had to put on a masturbating show for Kouyou before, not right to his face like this, and the thought of doing so made him incredibly nervous.  
  
“Come on, _babydoll_ ,” Kouyou chuckled, reaching for Yuu’s reluctant hand. He brought it over to circle around the raven’s own cock, egging his lover on to touch himself in front of him. “You’re so cute when you’re shy like this. But _Daddy_ can’t wait forever.” Planting a kiss against the side of Yuu’s head, Kouyou began whispering sensually to the younger man, guiding Yuu’s hand to pleasure his own erection.  
  
When Yuu let out the first small moan, Kouyou looked extremely pleased, liking what he was beginning to see. Kouyou’s name soon fell from Yuu’s lips with every gasp, as his right hand began cradling his achingly hard cock.  
  
“ _That’s it_ , babydoll,” Kouyou murmured softly, watching as Yuu’s eyes fluttered to a relaxing close as he grew more comfortable with the idea of touching himself. He guided Yuu for a few more thrusts before he left the raven-haired to do it on his own; the younger man always picked up so quickly. _So intelligent._  
  
“Feels good, doesn’t it? Touching yourself to thoughts of me… Is this what you did everyday whenever I went out to work? _Mmm_ … Your hole always felt so empty without my cock, didn’t it?” Upon hearing this, Yuu was softly whimpering and trembling outwardly, his cock twitching violently underneath his fingers. Kouyou noticed what his voice was doing to Yuu, and went smug at the sight. “Always so needy for a cock… I wonder how you even survive the rest of the day without being fucked. You’re _Daddy_ ’s little whore… So pretty and small and fuckable.”  
  
Kouyou was the _master_ at dirty talk. Of course he would be – he practiced it everyday with Yuu. And Yuu hated just how weak he was to Kouyou’s voice. The older man not only looked good, but had a low, raspy tone that dripped with sex and oozed nothing but dominance and control. Yuu wasn’t surprised Kouyou had managed to rise through the ranks in corporate world so quickly, not when he always had the ability to charm you so easily with his commands and make you do _every_ little thing he so wanted.  
  
Wrapping his fingers around his own cock, hard and hot, Yuu had never felt more dominated by the blond, even if Kouyou wasn’t physically inside of him per say. Just listening to his erotic voice alone, combined with the feeling of Kouyou’s release being stored all up inside of his body, was enough to make Yuu tremble in arousement. Every part of Yuu belonged to Kouyou… Every inch of Yuu’s body was owned by the older man. Yuu felt so full, _so_ good, _so_ possessed, _so_ controlled…  
  
“ _Nn_ … _So good,_ fuck,” Yuu moaned out softly, his delicate hand furiously sliding up and down his hard member, slowly and gradually bringing him to completion. He could feel Kouyou pulling away momentarily to get a better view of the raven, keeping his eyes fixated on every little motion of Yuu’s. And with every little squirm Yuu did, more small beads of white dripped down the raven’s entrance; the buttplug unable to contain _all_ of Kouyou’s overflowing cum inside of Yuu’s tight hole. Yuu was so goddamn full, _fuck_.  
  
“ _Nnn…_ Daddy Kouyou… _So mean…_ I’m such a whore… _fuck_ …” He panted slightly, unable to believe he was – once again – acting like a complete slut under his lover’s wishes. He was bringing pleasure to himself, _yes_ , but he was more concerned with making Kouyou happy and satisfying the older man with what he saw. And judging by Kouyou’s unblinking stare and that sly smile curling up on his lips, Yuu was pretty sure the man was relishing completely in the sight in front of him. Who wouldn’t, when their beloved lover was acting like such a whore, _just_ for him?  
  
“That’s it,” Kouyou hummed approvingly, eyes darting to look at Yuu’s cock, and then raising upwards to admire Yuu’s hazy, lustful expressions.  
  
“That’s what I wanted to see from you, princess. Enjoying Daddy’s hot white cum inside of you… That’s all Daddy wanted to know.”  
  
The wet heat flooding him from within was hot, _god_ , so fucking hot, and he chased after that feeling, the phantom sensations of the heavy thickness of Kouyou’s hard cock from before, the ridges and the sensitive vein throbbing under his touch. He thought of Kouyou’s dangerous, leering gaze on him, never pulling away, always so obsessed with every little thing Yuu did. His breath hitched and his hips stuttered, his strokes growing desperate as he tried and tried to reach completion, only for it to dance away from his fingers with every aching stroke.  
  
“You’re doing good, _so_ good, babydoll…” Kouyou breathed heavily with every passing second, ogling Yuu as the younger man frantically jerked himself off in front of him. Yuu looked at him through heavily-lidded eyes, his eyes completely drunken with pleasure, his face full of blush. “That’s right… Look at Daddy like that. Look at Daddy and touch yourself to the feeling of Daddy’s cum… You’re just Daddy’s little cum bucket, aren’t you?”  
  
They held each other’s gaze as Kouyou dirty talked him into complete submission, until Yuu’s head finally snapped back with a loud cry when he _finally_ neared his limit, the tears clinging to his lashes falling thickly down his face.  
  
_Kouyou was so fucking hot…!_  
  
“F- _Fuck_! Fuck _fuck_ fuck, Kou – _Ah_ – _Dadddyyy_ – I _can’t_ …!” Yuu gasped out, hand desperately tugging at his cock non-stop. It was building up, _fuck_ , the pleasure was building up so fast, and Yuu was going to _explode_ , and –  
  
– and Kouyou leaned forward to grab at the raven-haired’s neck in one swoop and cut Yuu’s mouth off with a rough kiss right then, smashing their lips together and cutting Yuu’s oxygen supply in the process. Yuu could do nothing but moan loudly into the kiss, allowing Kouyou to thoroughly ravage his mouth, hungry tongues battling each other, _the very same time_ spurts of white cum shot out and coated his fingers and stomach, making a huge mess out of Yuu. _God,_ Yuu was so fucking full and stained with cum right now, he might as well make it his new wardrobe.  
  
Kouyou didn’t allow Yuu to pull away from the kiss until the raven’s cock was emptied of his own release; and when it was, the blond bestowed plenty of butterfly kisses down Yuu’s neck, murmuring sweet nothings to his younger lover, thanking him for complying with all of Kouyou’s wants and needs. Yuu genuinely wanted to pass out from the after-bliss of his much-needed orgasm right then and there, but Kouyou reminded him they needed to get dressed for their day at the office, and that elicited an annoyed mewl or two from Yuu himself. Kouyou would usually make Yuu stay home if he thought his lover wasn’t up to it for the day, but Kouyou clearly wanted to _play_ more with Yuu by his side, and wasn’t going to simply stop here with some quick morning sex. So the raven-haired still got up in the end, deciding to prepare himself for the new day, knowing it would be a long one ahead of them.  
  
“Where are you going.” Kouyou barked assertively, the minute Yuu pushed away from the blond’s embrace and inched himself off the bed. He needed to get to his walk-in wardrobe to get a change of clothes, and clean himself off all these cum sticking to him, but Kouyou was quickly pulling Yuu back into his grasp, not wanting the raven to leave him so soon.  
  
Yuu was too tired to even be confused by Kouyou’s anger. “I have to go get my work clothes…”  
  
Kouyou scrutinized him closely with an amused gaze. “And _who_ said you were wearing them?”  
  
Yuu hit a dead pause.  
  
Great. He’d recognize that thinly veiled threat anywhere.  
  
“I’m… not?”  
  
The wicked gleam in Kouyou’s eyes gave his intentions all away, and immediately Yuu felt his stomach churn in trepidation. Kouyou _definitely_ had something else planned for him, and Yuu was too afraid to question what. He just knew he was incredibly fucked – both figuratively and literally – at this point.  
  
_Fuck_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> diamond buttplug probably looks something like this --> [here](https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/c4/e7/71/c4e771558c30b8c57d7792b36efc9ee0.jpg) (the silver one)
> 
> just imagine that the diamond costs like $1,000,000 because Kouyou can afford it and he'd waste money on shit like that LMAO


	65. the Office XV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've updated 2 chapters at one go, so please read the previous one first!

Yuu could _hardly_ open his legs without risking anything leaking.  
  
The poor raven-haired was trembling all over as he eased the car door shut beside him, strapping his seat belt over him as he settled down into his seat. _Fuck_. Kouyou had clothed him – _yes, personally clothed him, by helping him into them and all –_ into a sheer white women’s blouse, and a tight black Prada pencil skirt. It was obvious Kouyou wanted him to play the perfect part of a sexy secretary today, most likely another risqué fantasy Kouyou had been harbouring for quite some time in that coarse mind of his. Yuu had fought with Kouyou over his shoes, and thankfully Kouyou hadn’t insisted on the heels he’d wanted Yuu to wear at first (there was no way Yuu wouldn’t trip in those and sprain an ankle or two); Yuu had gotten Kouyou to agree upon a pair of stylishly heeled Miu Miu boots that the raven-haired was more confident he could handle instead.  
  
No, but seriously. Where were all of these women’s clothing coming from?!  
  
Yuu had done his hair up in his usual high ponytail, and put on his black-rimmed glasses for good measure. Since Kouyou was _so_ into the roleplaying idea of Yuu dressing up as some kinky ass secretary, Yuu thought Kouyou would appreciate the smart, geeky look. And it seemed like Kouyou did, for the older man had given him a swift glance of approval before allowing Yuu to step foot out of the house, a sickening sort of delight flashing vividly in those dark eyes. Kouyou was always so _fucking_ obvious.  
  
Yuu couldn’t stand his blond CEO lover, honestly.  
  
They were late for work now – as they had been for the past four days. Kouyou didn’t see anything wrong with heading to the office two hours late, apparently, finding that spending his morning fulfilling his endless sexual needs was a much worthier cause than contributing to the economy. Yuu snorted at the thought.  
  
In Kouyou’s defence, though, it was the last week of Yuu’s little stint as his secretary, and they’d spent the bulk of Yuu’s time in the office _actually_ working and being productive, which meant they hadn’t explored their many options and possibilities of having sex in the office at all. After their huge argument that led to Yuu’s dramatic fainting episode, Kouyou realized they’d spent far too much time squabbling over things that didn’t matter, and that caused them to lose focus of what was truly important: each other.  
  
And of course, Kouyou sought to rectify that problem urgently. By bringing a new kink to the table every day, it seemed.  
  
Yuu had been the one to convince Kouyou to still let him come in for work, and so Yuu wasn’t complaining. Otherwise, the CEO would have been rather resolute on keeping Yuu at home to rest and do anything that wouldn’t involve stress or strain his health. Kouyou meant well, really, but Yuu didn’t want to stay home all day with no goal in sight. He’d appreciated his entire learning experience at the company, and would have agreed to continue if he hadn’t seen how much of a strain it would put on their relationship.  
  
Perhaps it wasn’t too advisable for Kouyou and Yuu to work too closely in proximity with each other; sure, healthy relationships were bound to have disagreements, but Yuu detested having fights with Kouyou at all. Kouyou had two different attitudes when it came to his personal life, and then to his work, and having them cross over to each other just spelled trouble for Yuu. Yuu never wanted to risk their love. They’d come too far.  
  
Kouyou got into the driver’s seat and started up the Lamborghini, preparing to begin his drive. He cast an affectionate glance to the raven-haired seated next to him and chuckled knowingly to himself, having not felt this smug since Yuu had agreed to marry him. Yuu felt his fiancé’s leering gaze and ignored him stubbornly, not wanting to give in anymore to the blond.  
  
“Just get to work already,” Yuu muttered sulkingly, folding his arms to himself. Fuck, his insides still felt so warm and full _;_ stuffed full of cum by that diamond buttplug of his. He couldn’t believe he’d agreed to let Kouyou do this to him for the day. “And don’t blame me if your dirty semen leaks through my skirt and stains your car seats.”  
  
Kouyou laughed with pride. “That’d make a good story to tell, wouldn’t it?”  
  
Yuu scowled hard to him. “You’re impossible!”  
  
“And _you’re_ surprisingly obedient,” Kouyou smirked, beginning their drive. “You let me do anything to you. Aren’t you so glad you met _me_? What if you had gotten together with a sexual predator instead? They’d do so many things to you, and you’d go along with all of it. Ugh, thinking about such a thing is already making me cringe. You’d let so many men take advantage of you. Not good. Let’s have a change of topic.”  
  
Yuu gave him a black look. “You know, Kouyou, has it ever occurred to you that maybe _,_ just maybe, you’re the sexual predator you’re talking about?”  
  
Kouyou sniggered. “Ah, that’s a possibility. But I’m not so bad, aren’t I? I think it’s OK if I’m the sexual predator. I’m considerate enough.”  
  
Yuu snorted. “Considerate enough? Takashima Kouyou thinks he’s considerate _enough_?”  
  
“OK, maybe considerate wasn’t the right word,” Kouyou feigned to be in contemplative thought. “Rich? Classy? Handsome? Let’s go with handsome. It boosts my ego.”  
  
Tsk. It wasn’t as if Kouyou was wrong. The CEO was indeed drop-dead gorgeous.  
  
“You’re lucky you’re so hot,” Yuu mumbled incoherently to himself. Kouyou got that, though, and hearing his fiancé’s words only made him laugh harder.  
  
“You’re _so_ cute,” Kouyou sighed out, his eyes tenderly gazing at Yuu. “How ever did I get so lucky?”  
  
“I got lured in because I thought you were a gentleman,” Yuu stuck a tongue out. Kouyou simply grinned. “And for some strange, twisted reason, I decided to stay. And now I’m stuck in a land of kinky terrors, _noooo_ …”  
  
“Well, it’s because you love me,” Kouyou answered happily.  
  
Then he paused for a moment, and darted his eyes nervously to look at Yuu.  
  
“Right?”  
  
Yuu’s heart went soft. “Of course it’s because I love you.”  
  
Kouyou’s eyes gleamed once more in elation. Yuu giggled quietly at the sight. Kouyou was _so_ easy to appease.  
  
“I love you more,” Kouyou smiled dizzily in return.  
  
Yuu didn’t bother to argue.  
  
~  
  
Yuu had been nervous about entering the office building in his get-up – though he was fairly certain he wouldn’t be recognized at one go; he _did_ look vastly different from the Yuu he was so used to dressing up as everyday – but somehow, somewhere, in that perverse brain of Kouyou’s, was a logical part that had thankfully told him to bring a blazer along for Yuu. Kouyou had taken a blazer from his own closet, in a size that would clearly become oversized when draped over Yuu. It served the purpose of hiding Yuu’s outfit from anyone else though, which was largely the point. Kouyou didn’t want anyone else to be looking at Yuu when he was dressed for Kouyou’s eyes _only_ , and he would go to lengths to ensure no other man would lay their filthy gaze upon his lover.  
  
Just like every other day, Kouyou kept Yuu close to him as they waited by the lifts, drawing stares from onlookers as always due to Kouyou’s prestigious position as the company’s president.  
  
“I don’t want you seeing anyone else today,” Kouyou cleared his throat, saying, making clear to his raven-haired lover. “I’ll leave all errands for Akira or Takanori. You won’t need to leave my floor today.”  
  
Yuu knew just how possessive Kouyou was of him, and with his words it clearly showed. He thought he’d tease Kouyou a little. “So… Akira can see me like this?”  
  
Kouyou sniffed, not liking the imagery Yuu had just placed in his head. “On second thought, no. Maybe I’ll just lock you in my office, then.”  
  
Yuu giggled. “I don’t know why you made me come today. You’re not going to get any work done with me around.”  
  
Kouyou raised an eyebrow at Yuu’s flirty stance. “Hn. You’re right. But maybe I just needed the office as a venue to re-enact my roleplay fantasies.”  
  
Yuu’s eyes widened at how casually Kouyou had just said that – there were people walking everywere around them. “ _Kouyou!_ We’re at the office lobby!”  
  
“Then they’re a pervert if they listen,” Kouyou huffed defensively.  
  
Yuu squinted his eyes to him. “You’re the pervert for making them listen.”  
  
Kouyou chortled. “Says the princess with hot cum leaking through his ass.”  
  
Yuu’s mouth dropped at the obscenity of it all. “ _Taka. Shima. Kouyou!”_ Seriously, Yuu was praying _so_ hard no one was eavesdropping in on their conversation right now. Yuu would literally _die_.  
  
“Don’t be so obedient to me,” Kouyou grinned, winking handsomely to his younger lover. “I’ll take advantage of it, Yuu. If you won’t say _no_ , I won’t know when to stop… And then you can’t blame me, can you?”  
  
Why the _fuck_ did Yuu just find that statement so hot instead of insulting.  
  
“You mean I can say no to you?” Yuu pouted.  
  
“What are you talking about? Of course you can,” Kouyou sighed though, sounding dejected at the idea. “It’d make me sad, but of course, if anything makes you uncomfortable, you can tell me. I know I can get overboard at times, and I don’t want to do anything that could potentially hurt you. I’m hard to be with, aren’t I?”  
  
And Yuu knew that Kouyou had only said those self-depreciating words as a joke, but hearing it made Yuu worried, and the raven-haired never wanted to make Kouyou feel like he was burdensome to be with. Yuu leaned forward and ambushed Kouyou into a tight hug, dipping his head into his chest.  
  
“You’re not hard to be with!” Yuu hurriedly made clear, squeezing his CEO lover tight in his hold. “I love being with you. I love doing anything you want me to do. I love making you happy. I love saying yes to everything you want. I could never see you sad. I love being taken advantage of by you. I want it, too. I want everything you want of me. I want _and_ love _and_ need you.”  
  
Kouyou had a look of surprise on at first, having never expected such an outburst from the raven, but his face gradually radiated with delight, and his lips pulled up into a blissful grin.  
  
 _Too. Cute._  
  
“Why are you so cute all the time.” Kouyou’s arms embraced Yuu closely to him and squeezed him right back. “You drive me crazy. And you ask me why I’m so mean to you. It’s because you’re too cute, and I’m overcome with all these twisted desires and cravings to _have_ you. Of course I’ll take every opportunity to make sure you’re mine. You’re too cute…”  
  
Yuu pulled back slightly, just enough to gaze back up into Kouyou’s beaming eyes. His heart galloped at an insane pace, his cheeks turning peach pink at Kouyou’s words.  
  
“You’re not so bad yourself.”  
  
Kouyou laughed at the raven’s response. “I’m thankful that I’m at least adequate enough for my princess’s tastes.”  
  
“Meh. You’re okay.” Yuu giggled, teasing. “Acceptable. Sufficient enough. Good-ish. I guess you’re passable. Hmm… Satisfactory?”  
  
This time, it was Kouyou who was doing the pouting. “You know just how to bruise a man’s ego, don’t you, babydoll?”  
  
“I know how to do a lot more things to a man than just bruise his ego,” Yuu sang.  
  
And Kouyou knew _exactly_ what Yuu was talking about.  
  
~  
  
Try as he may, Yuu couldn’t get through even a quarter of his work without being distracted by the discomfort underneath his skirt. Having a metal buttplug inside of him was bad enough – he had to deal with the imminent fear of Kouyou’s cum oozing out and staining everything he sat on as well, and Yuu had never felt more… _dirty._ He’d never been made to keep cum inside of him for periods this long before, and he couldn’t bring himself to work when every passing second just reminded him of the wild sex they’d just had this morning.  
  
The very evidence of Kouyou owning him was literally stuck up his ass, and Yuu often found himself waddling painfully slowly across the room whenever he needed to get things done. He could barely walk properly, much less run errands. Still, as odd as the new experience felt, Yuu found he did like the feeling of keeping a part of Kouyou inside of him at all times. It made him feel close to the blond CEO, and it was such a turn-on knowing that _only_ the both of them knew Yuu had been made to store Kouyou’s cum. It was such a vulgar thing to do, _god_ , but Yuu wasn’t even shocked by their antics anymore. It would be their deep, dark secret for the day, until Kouyou saw it fit to remove the offending sex toy from Yuu’s ass. Until then, Yuu was content being Kouyou’s little cum bucket.  
  
Takanori came up to Kouyou’s floor a bit later, to hand over some documents Akira needed signed. He’d noticed Yuu’s rather… feminine get-up, and knew instantly something was up between the couple. Takanori had already observed that the couple had been very… active in the office, of late, and Yuu’s outfit today didn’t surprise him much at all.  
  
“Nice Prada skirt,” Takanori commented, eyeing the raven-haired man with a sly grin.  
  
Now Yuu _really_ wanted to die. If Takanori knew Yuu had a buttplug up his ass right now, the brunet would make sure it’d haunt Yuu for the rest of his life.  
  
“Kouyou’s idea,” Yuu muttered, averting his embarrassed gaze away from Takanori’s eyes.  
  
Takanori leaned against his desk, ogling at Yuu’s dressing further. “I take it we’re not having lunch together today.”  
  
“Uh. N–No, please, no.” Yuu could hardly walk, Jesus Christ.  
  
“Totally get it.” Takanori waved the matter off. “I’ll go badger my man for some office sex myself. Toodles!”  
  
And off he headed for the lifts, skipping in his steps.  
  
Well, at least Yuu got that out of the way.  
  
~  
  
Yuu’s office phone rang two hours later, by which time Yuu had only gotten about ten emails replied to, tops.  
  
“You’ve reached Takashima Kouyou’s office,” Yuu uttered as cheerfully as he possibly could.  
  
A slow laugh came from the other end. Yuu’s cheerful demeanour dropped once he realized it was the CEO itself, calling from the next room over. “So, how are things going?”  
  
“What do you mean _how are things going_ ,” Yuu glowered to the phone.  
  
The gentleness in Kouyou’s voice abruptly faded.  
  
“Who said you could speak to me like that?”  
  
Yuu’s heart dropped.  
  
 _What the fuck?_ He’d never heard Kouyou talk to him like this before. Discounting the times where they had fought, of course. Kouyou was always so kind to him, no matter what…  
  
“Speak to you like what?” Yuu answered, indignant. “I’m speaking normally.”  
  
Kouyou made a noise of displeasure. Yuu frowned, confused.  
  
“I didn’t give you permission not to address me by ‘sir’.”  
  
…Oh. _Oh_.  
  
Now Yuu felt dumb for not catching on earlier. Kouyou was taking this role-playing thing a step ahead, wasn’t he?  
  
“S–Sorry, sir,” Yuu tried to sound as meek as he possibly could, lowering his voice to a subservient tone. “I forgot… sir.”  
  
Kouyou seemed more appeased. “Good. You keep that up for me, sweetheart. Be a good babydoll, and I won’t get mad at you…”  
  
 _Fuck_. Was Kouyou trying to make Yuu horny, or what? Because it was definitely working – especially in the kind of state Yuu was in.  
  
“I don’t want _sir_ to get mad at me,” Yuu pouted.  
  
“Of course you don’t want that. I can get violent when I’m angry, and you don’t like it when I’m rough with you, do you? Or maybe you do… You’re always begging for me to do more to you. Such a naughty babydoll… I can’t ever get enough of you.”  
  
Yuu squeezed his thighs together at the thought. _Ugh_. Kouyou’s voice – so deep, so firm, so commanding – Yuu could feel his dick jerk with every word uttered.  
  
“Yuu likes it when sir is rough with him,” the raven moaned out, a hand moving down his skirt to caress lightly at his crotch. “Yuu wants sir to teach Yuu a lesson, so Yuu won’t make the same mistakes again…”  
  
Kouyou’s breath hitched at the other end. _Success_. The CEO must be feeling as riled up as Yuu was. Yuu wondered if he was already pulling his cock out of his pants, and fondling with it as he spoke. “You’re being so bad, and you know that, don’t you, Yuu? I can’t keep a slut like you around as my secretary. So many men in this office would want to fuck you… And I can’t have that happen, can I?”  
  
Yuu chewed at his lip at the imagery. “They’d all take advantage of me… I’d be fucked completely dry by the end of lunch.”  
  
There was anger in Kouyou’s voice this time – the kind that Yuu expected the moment he challenged Kouyou’s complete ownership of him.  
  
“Would you?” Kouyou growled quietly, displeased with what he was hearing. “Would you let other men fuck you when I’ve ordered you to be mine, and _mine_ only? Would you dare to disobey me? You’d make me _so_ mad, Yuu… You’d make me so angry.”  
  
Yuu had never dared to thread such boundaries before, seeing as Kouyou’s over possessiveness meant he never liked thinking about Yuu with other men, but Yuu found that he wanted to make Kouyou mad. Wanted to piss Kouyou off and see what he’d do. He’d never tested Kouyou too much before, because he knew Kouyou didn’t like it, but this time… This time Yuu thought he should be afforded some leeway, seeing as he’d complied to whatever Kouyou wanted him to do this morning.  
  
Kouyou deserved to be teased…  
  
“I’d go down on my knees and suck off each and everyone’s cocks,” Yuu breathed, hearing Kouyou’s growl increase in decibel with his every word. “I’d want it… I’d want to be fucked by all of them. I think I deserve it, for being such a good secretary. I want to be filled up by a cock in one end, and another cock in the other… I’d want to be used and cum on by all of them. I’d take it all, _sir_ , I’d take all their cocks like a good slut…”  
  
Fuck, Yuu’s dick was _so_ hard.  
  
“No, you wouldn’t,” Kouyou snarled, giving Yuu just the reaction he expected. “You’re not fucking allowed to. I wouldn’t let you out of this office. I’d keep you all to myself. I’d bind your wrists together, and tie you up so that you wouldn’t be able to go anywhere. Then I’d make you open that tight slutty mouth of yours and make you suck my big cock. You like cock so much, don’t you? I’d give you enough to last you a lifetime. I’d cum over and over again in your mouth. Then I’d do it on your face. I’d stain your clear glasses. I’d fuck your mouth until you became sore and begging.  
  
Then I’d flip you over and fuck that tight ass of yours. You wouldn’t have a say. I’d cum inside of you and then cum on your ass. I’d paint you all over with cum. You’d be my little fuck toy. I’d make sure you’d never think of any other man ever again once I’m done with you. You’ll only ever think about my cock, and _my_ cock only. Fucking slut… You just need to be taught a lesson to know where you’ve gone wrong.”  
  
Yuu had never felt needier for Kouyou’s cock than _right_ _now_. God, he loved it so much when Kouyou showed just how dominant he truly was. Kouyou hated having his power and authority challenged, and Yuu had done just that – and Kouyou had reacted accordingly in return. Kouyou was _such_ a man. Kouyou was always the one in control here, never Yuu.  
  
“What if I got bored of you.” Yuu felt the thrill bubble up inside of his chest, knowing Kouyou loathed to even hear of such a thought. “What if I don’t want your cock anymore. I got bored. I’ll find another man to please me. You can’t stop me…”  
  
Kouyou’s tone was dangerously amused. “So, you really think you can get away from me that easily? You forget the kind of position I’m in and the kind of money I have? You should be scared of what I can do to you, princess. I wouldn’t try that if I were you.”  
  
 _That_ gave Yuu the shivers. Kouyou could get so intimidating at times. Sexily intimidating.  
  
“And when I get you back–” Kouyou barked. “–and trust me, I _will_ ; you’ll get it from me. You’ll never dare think of leaving me again. I’d punish you so much. I’d have you crying and begging by the end of it all. You’ll only ever dare worship my cock, I promise. Such a demanding princess. I’ll make you realize who you’re dealing with. It’s your fault that you made me so obsessed with you. You have no one to blame but yourself… Now you’ll never get rid of me.”  
  
Yuu’s heart skipped a beat. It was at times like these that really made Yuu wonder the extent of what Kouyou would do to get him back if he dared leave him again – Kouyou would definitely not take it well if Yuu ever set him up for a second heartbreak. Not that Yuu would ever try to, of course. He loved Kouyou too much.  
  
“Come see me in my office,” Kouyou demanded sternly, and then he hung up the call.  
  
Yuu hadn’t realized he’d stopped breathing.  
  
~  
  
Knocking against Kouyou’s office door twice and then entering, Yuu was completely weak-kneed as he strutted into the room, his legs shaking as he felt the buttplug squelch within his insides with every move. Kouyou didn’t look pleased at all. The blond president was seated before his desk, his eyes having gone entirely aloof and distant. His shirt’s sleeves had been rolled up to his elbows, exposing a chunky amount of his arm and an expensive watch worn on his wrist that made Yuu’s throat go dry at the sight.  
  
The blond’s work shirt, as usual, was fit on him, and the top two buttons had been unbuttoned in a bid for more air. Kouyou had never embodied the look of a CEO more perfectly than this; so unfeeling, so stand-offish, so hunky, so… _in power_. Kouyou’s frigid eyes followed Yuu’s every movement, a deep frown upon his lips as he did so.  
  
Wow, Yuu had _really_ pissed the older man off.  
  
And it excited every bit of Yuu’s lower regions to know so.  
  
“You called for me,” Yuu murmured, keeping his actions dainty and demure in front of the blond.  
  
“I did.” Kouyou responded crudely, staring straight at Yuu. “Come here.”  
  
And when Yuu headed straight for the chair opposite of Kouyou’s one, the man was quick to bark a second instruction at the raven-haired. Yuu almost jumped.  
  
“I _said_ come here. Next to me. Not opposite me.”  
  
 _Holy fucking shit_. Kouyou could get so scary when he wanted to.  
  
Yuu made his way over to Kouyou’s side, and was soon met with another order.  
  
“Don’t fight me,” Kouyou growled, then forcefully tugged at Yuu by the arm and pulled his body over the older man’s lap, such that Yuu was lying on his stomach on Kouyou’s thighs and his butt was sticking high up into the air. Yuu gasped, having never expected such rough treatment, and felt himself quivering a little in response.  
  
“W–What are you doing?” Yuu whimpered, already frightened by all the sudden manhandling of his body. He always felt like such a lightweight whenever Kouyou did that.  
  
“You’ve been a very bad babydoll,” Kouyou hissed, and Yuu could tell the irritance in his voice was real. Yuu felt his heart palpitate violently in his chest. He couldn’t look at Kouyou’s face from here, but his tone alone said it all. Kouyou was _not_ happy with him, and wanted to punish Yuu for it. “Saying things like you’ll get bored of me and that you’ll want to run away from me. You know I don’t like to hear such things, and yet you want to test me… You’re getting more and more daring, and that’s not how I taught you.”  
  
Yuu bit his lip. Kouyou’s avid need to possess Yuu was making the raven-haired shiver with anticipation. _He wanted it_ … He wanted Kouyou to own him in his entirety.  
  
“I’m sorry, _Daddy_ … I didn’t mean to make you mad,” Yuu sulked, writhing a little in the position Kouyou had forced him in. “I was just teasing you _Daddy_ … You know how naughty your babydoll can be.”  
  
Kouyou let out a disapproving grunt. “And you expect me to let you off based on that? I don’t think you’ll learn, Yuu… You’re always so stubborn. No, I have to do something else to make you understand just how angry you make me feel whenever you say things thoughtlessly like this… You have to be taught a lesson.”  
  
Yuu couldn’t even get a word out before he felt the first heavy resounding smack against his ass. _Fuck_. Yuu cried out loudly in surprise, having forgotten how much stronger Kouyou was in strength than him, and how easily Kouyou could use it to dominate him.  
  
What was most surprising was the hardening of the raven’s erection in response to the hit. Yuu had never felt so violated in his life, and here he was, giving that right up to Kouyou so freely like it was nothing… Kouyou wielded absolute control.  
  
“D– _Daddy_ ,” Yuu felt the tears beginning to well up in his eyes. Kouyou did _not_ hold back. His palms were so large, and his arms were so incredibly muscled. Kouyou really wanted Yuu to learn his lesson, after all. “P–Please… Yuu knows he’s wrong.”  
  
“I don’t think you know it enough,” Kouyou muttered resentfully, though he sounded less displeased now that he’d administered the first of Yuu’s punishment. “I think I have to do it again. Harder.”  
  
“N–No, _please_ –” Yuu went breathless as Kouyou cut him off with a harder, stinging spank. Yuu muffled his deep moan, already feeling his skin beginning to redden.  
  
Kouyou sounded smug. “You’re getting hard. I don’t think you understand this is a punishment.”  
  
Yuu felt humiliation wash over him at the knowledge that Kouyou could feel his erection. “I… I’m not enjoying it, I swear.” He had no idea why his body was betraying him like this…  
  
“Then I guess I can spank you a couple more times,” Kouyou concluded. “Because you understand this is a punishment. Don’t you, _princess_?”  
  
Yuu shook his head in fervid protest. “K–Kou, p–please, I– _Ah!_ ”  
  
Kouyou landed a few more quick spanks onto Yuu’s bottoms, and on the final slap his palm stayed where it landed and felt the red hot heat emanating from his skin. Yuu’s eyes were moist with tears at this point, the pain choking him right up. And yet there was something about surrending himself so much to Kouyou’s control that he’d even let Kouyou punish him like this… There was only complete trust between the both of them that Yuu didn’t feel turned off by such an idea, and instead turned on.  
  
“Daddy, is it over…” Yuu sobbed, acknowledging that in this situation, Kouyou had all the say, and he didn’t. He’d relinquish all control to his lover, and expect Kouyou to know when enough was enough.  
  
And in this case, Kouyou didn’t want to go too far.  
  
“It is, my sweet little babydoll,” Kouyou purred, and then he was lowering a hand to thread through Yuu’s raven hair, comforting the raven-haired through soft caresses. His other hand stroked past Yuu’s bottoms to soothe the stinging, not wanting to bruise Yuu too much. “I think that’s enough for now. You did so good, babydoll… You’ve made Daddy happy again.”  
  
Yuu attempted to blink his tears away. “That’s good to hear.” He leaned in to Kouyou’s touch, nuzzling cutely into the blond’s hand that was stroking against his head. Kouyou smiled softly at the sight.  
  
“Now let Daddy take a look at his little present for you earlier in the day…” Kouyou murmured, pushing Yuu’s pencil skirt up and bunching it over his ass. Yuu flinched as his naked bottoms were exposed to cold air, but still wriggled his butt anyhow, showing it off to his lover. Kouyou’s palms cupped at each ass cheek, spreading them apart just slightly to take a better look at the diamond buttplug that had been inserted inside of the raven-haired. The more Kouyou pulled his cheeks apart, the more trails of white cum began spilling out, leaving watery lines down Yuu’s thighs.  
  
Kouyou went completely hard at the sight. It was _so_ fucking erotic to see his princess being so submissive and yielding to him, keeping Kouyou’s cum inside of him just because Kouyou had wanted Yuu to do so. Yuu never could learn to say _no_ , could he… Yuu was always so docile, so compliant. Yuu belonged to him, and it showed.  
  
“It’s all leaking,” Yuu whined, realizing Kouyou was doing nothing but watching Yuu’s ass as cum escaped endlessly from his taut hole. “I’m going to stain your work pants.”  
  
“It’s well worth it,” Kouyou mumbled, mesmerized by the sight. “You look so pretty like this… Flooded with evidence of _my_ fucking. So pretty, so beautiful, so precious… You’ll be the death of me, Yuu. You don’t understand how obsessed I am with you.”  
  
Yuu felt blood rush to his cheeks at his words. “You’re being _so_ embarrassing again…”  
  
“ _You_ make me embarrassing,” Kouyou sighed out happily, and then his fingers gently lowered to Yuu’s entrance, maintaining a firm grip on the diamond that protruded from in between the raven’s butt cheeks. “I’ll take it out now, babydoll… I’ll be careful.”  
  
And with every inch of the buttplug that was being eased out, streams of cum escaped along with it, all of them streaming down Yuu’s naked thighs making Kouyou’s cock ache more and more in response. Yuu looked so fucking hot like this, _fuck_.  
  
“Mmm… I’m so empty now,” Yuu mewled at the sudden loss of warmth. He had rather liked being filled up by Kouyou like that.  
  
“Not for long,” Kouyou grinned, and Yuu felt his insides twitch in excitement.  
  
“I’ll make sure you’re never empty for long, my princess.”  
  
~  
  
As promised, Yuu was soon full with Kouyou’s cock once more, this time with his back lying up against Kouyou’s chest, and his legs straddling over Kouyou’s thighs. Kouyou held him by the waist, guiding Yuu right down, lowering Yuu onto his cock. He slipped right into Yuu’s body, finally feeling that tight, wet heat he craved.  
  
“Fuck _yes_ ,” Yuu moaned loudly, thighs quivering as he felt Kouyou’s thickness inside of him again. It’d only been a couple of hours since their last fuck, and already Yuu missed the feeling so desperately. Nothing beat Kouyou’s cock – it’d ruined him for anything else.  
  
“Mmm,” Kouyou groaned, turning his face to Yuu’s ear, burying his nose into Yuu’s hair. The raven always smelled so damn good. “So tight as always. Always sucking in my cock so eagerly like you’re a starving whore… What an impatient princess.”  
  
Yuu let out a long sigh as he gave his hips a little thrust, giving Kouyou the hint to move. The blond then held Yuu’s waist tighter and rolled his hips, beginning to slip in and out of Yuu’s body, not even bothering to contain his pleasured groans with every thrust. Yuu’s tightness felt so fucking good squeezing all around his cock, and Kouyou was relishing in every second of it.  
  
“So fucking good, _fuck_ ,” Kouyou sighed out, biting into Yuu’s neck as he fucked into the raven with slow and steady precision. Yuu grinded down back with every thrust, throwing his head back against Kouyou’s shoulder and laying there with his mouth parted, his voice coming out in wrecked moans every now and then.  
  
“ _Nn…_ D–Daddy’s cock is the best,” Yuu panted, his ass slapping lewdly against Kouyou’s upper thighs. His body spasmed with pleasure each time Kouyou’s unintentionally grazed his sensitive spot, and it made Kouyou frenetically fuck harder up into him, wanting to see Yuu lose himself. Yuu always looked so perfect like this, eyes shut, mouth open, body trembling, and Kouyou never wanted to see Yuu any otherwise.  
  
The beauty of having Yuu do his hair up in high ponytails was that it always, _without fail_ , got incredibly messy during sex, and afforded Kouyou many opportunities to pull at them. Now Yuu’s ponytail was loosened all over, and in a complete mess. Kouyou hadn’t allowed Yuu to take off his black-rimmed glasses, either, for it’d painted too pretty a picture of Yuu as his perfect secretary; and Kouyou found himself getting turned on at how foggy Yuu’s glasses were getting, due to the hot breaths they kept letting out.  
  
Yuu was _impossibly_ hot dressed like this. Mental note: Kouyou now had a glasses fetish. And possibly a secretary-attired kink.  
  
All on Yuu’s body, _only._  
  
“Don’t you enjoy having such a caring boss,” Kouyou asked as sweat beaded around his temples, making his hair stick to his forehead. “I take such good care of you… Making sure you never have to wonder what it’s like to be so fucked you can’t even do your job properly anymore. This is the ideal job, isn’t it? Getting fucked by the company’s president day and night… I’m starting to think you’re the one who came here to seduce me.”  
  
Yuu’s own cock jerked at the insinuation. Kouyou wouldn’t stop with his boss and secretary role-play, would he?  
  
“You’re… _Nn_ … the mean boss… _oh…_ fucking me… _ah_ … whenever you want to… _nnngghhh…_ ”  
  
“It’s not my fault when you’re walking around in tight skirts everyday,” Kouyou grinned, swirling his tongue against the red marks he’d left on Yuu’s neck, driving himself in and out of the wet heat around his dick. “ _Mm…_ You’re the one who made me unable to control myself. You can’t blame me if one day I order you to let me fuck you or risk getting fired. My seductive princess…”  
  
Yuu shuddered below him hearing his words, his hands gripping weakly into Kouyou’s meaty arms for support.  
  
“P– _Please_ , fuck,” Yuu begged, rocking in time with Kouyou’s frantic thrusts. He was close, _so_ close, and the combination of Kouyou’s filthy voice, Kouyou’s sharp teeth scraping against his neck, and Kouyou’s big cock dragging inside of him, was inching him steadily to climax. “Harder, _Daddy_ … Faster, _Daddy_ … Oh my _god_ … I’m so fucking close…”  
  
And then Kouyou reached his hand forward to squeeze at the base of Yuu’s stiff, sticky flesh, the anger from before coming back in his voice.  
  
“Don’t you _ever_ fucking dare talk about running away from me again,” Kouyou snapped. “And don’t you ever fucking dare talk about letting other men fuck you. It’ll make me very angry, princess. So don’t test Daddy like this, alright?”  
  
Yuu’s breathing was ragged. “Yes, _Daddy_ …”  
  
And so Kouyou slid his hand along Yuu’s cock, helping to jerk him off in rhythm to his thrusting. It was too easy to cum after that.  
  
“ _Fuckfuckfuck_!” Yuu cried out soon after, when his orgasm hit him like a crashing wave, his body shaking in absolute ecstasy. Hot strands of semen shot out from the tip of his cock, landing in pearly white pools on his stomach.  
  
“K–Kou… _Nnn_ … So good… _fuck_ …”  
  
With a few more rolls of his hips and a deep groan, Kouyou came hard inside of his raven-haired lover too, his cock pulsing as he pooled fresh cum back again inside of Yuu’s ass. His shoulders heaved as he attempted to catch his breath, having thoroughly enjoyed that last fuck.  
  
Yuu’s shallow breathing filled his ears as the younger man struggled to crack his eyelids open. Kouyou’s arms instinctively wrapped around Yuu’s smaller body, hugging his fiancé to himself. Yuu’s lips formed a small smile at the protective gesture, and he buried his head back into Kouyou’s neck, liking it when Kouyou held him so preciously, as if to safeguard him from everyone else.  
  
“Did I overdo it,” Kouyou murmured, bending his head down to kiss Yuu’s head. Yuu shook his head. “I get so out of control when you make it so easy for me to be mean to you…”  
  
Yuu giggled in reply. “I love it when you get out of control.”  
  
Kouyou smiled sheepishly. He had guessed that. “You’re unbelievable, princess.”  
  
“I’m the perfect match for you,” Yuu smiled back, raising his head up from the blond’s neck to gaze into Kouyou’s unwavering eyes.  
  
Kouyou’s heart squeezed at the raven’s words. “You really are.”  
  
“We really came to work everyday this week just to fuck, didn’t we?” Yuu laughed. Kouyou lowered his lips to plant another kiss atop his cheek.  
  
“You know, Yuu, we still have three more days till you end this working stint.”  
  
“I think I’m beginning to detect a hint of regret,” Yuu teased. “Maybe we should give Chiaki another week of maternity leave?”  
  
Kouyou sighed. He’d like that, too, but… “I don’t want you overly exhausting yourself.”  
  
“ _Please_. Like I’m very stress-free, being fucked 24/7.”  
  
“Well, it _sounds_ like you’re very stress-free, especially when you’re moaning into my ears 24/7.”  
  
Yuu squinted to him. “You’re very cunning, Takashima Kouyou.”  
  
“And you’re very cute,” Kouyou laughed, hugging Yuu in his grasp. “Aren’t we planning on getting married in half a year? I don’t think the wedding preparations are going to do themselves.”  
  
Yuu frowned at the reminder. He’d trashed those preparations aside ever since he’d started working for Kouyou. “Right… Those plans have been neglected for a bit.”  
  
“Or we could just not have a wedding, if that’s what you want,” Kouyou shrugged, not wanting to overwhelm the raven-haired too much if that was the case. “If it’s too much stress, Yuu, just let me know, alright? I don’t need a wedding if you don’t want it.”  
  
Yuu pouted at such a thought. “I want it.”  
  
Kouyou chuckled at his insistence. He rather appreciated the idea, too. “OK, then. You know I only want you to be happy. You just let me know if you need my help, alright? I know I can get pretty occupied with work, but I’ll definitely hear you out whenever you need me to.”  
  
Yuu beamed up happily to him. “I know you will, Kou. My fiancé’s the sweetest to me.”  
  
Kouyou grinned, unable to stand how adorable Yuu was acting to him once again. “That will be _my husband_ soon.”  
  
Yuu giggled playfully. “Maybe I’ll go back to _my boyfriend_.”  
  
Kouyou shot him a look. “Oi.”  
  
“ _My_ _husband_ it is,” Yuu smiled blissfully, circling his arms up high Kouyou’s neck, bringing his lips to meet Kouyou’s.  
  
And Yuu could hardly _wait_ for their wedding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> didja miss me
> 
> thus concludes my office side-story! it has spanned 15 chapters, included a whirlwind of a tornado of a parallel dimension, and unnecessary angst. XD I enjoyed it, though. I'm glad I had a space to write a "what if Kaoi existed". I hope you did too!
> 
> I have this legit fear (no one voiced this out, I just have this fear for no reason lmao) whenever Kouyou does kinky ass weird shit to Yuu you guys will think he's being too coercive or demanding ;_; that's not the case-- Yuu is 100% completely on the same wavelength as Kouyou and enjoys whatever Kouyou brings to the table <333 and he's not doing it just to make Kouyou happy either, he's super turned on by whatever Kouyou makes him do. XD Yuu's a slut :))))) but it's OK, 'cause he's a slut for Kouyou :)))))
> 
> I've been so busy the past few months -- attended gazette's summer standing tour, finally got my driving license, started school again -- so I haven't been too free (or inspired) to write much :( but I've always been meaning to write office sex, and had this horrifying realization that... I HAD NOT?! not in this side-story, anyway. TRAGIC. so here it is. in full-scale.
> 
> I really love possessive Kouyou, so sue me :(((((
> 
> I have plans for more SA side-stories, but I don't know what you guys feel about it :O am I being overly excessive y/n? I adore their dynamic so much! I can't bear to let this baby go ;_;
> 
> I'll see you guys again in (hopefully) maaaybe future updates... let me know what you think!!! <3


	66. Prequel: Side-story III

He’d do it.  
   
He’d do it for _real,_ this time. No more holding back; no more beating around the bush. No more staying as the reserved, mousy, quiet introvert. He’d never felt this way for anyone before; never felt his – he’d even assumed it was _non-existent_ – heart pound so hard whenever the raven was around. In all twenty-one years of his mundane life, he’d never found such strong reason to reach for new breath every morning. Yutaka’s life was unnecessarily dull, marked with daily routines and uneventful happenings. He had spent the bulk of his life actively involved in school, excelling as well as he could academically in order to qualify for medical school, and now that he was here, nothing else seemed to perk his interest. Most of his time was spent cramming for tests, and he’d always been so focused on his goal of becoming a doctor, just like his parents were, that nothing else really seemed to matter; not even love.  
   
It wasn’t necessarily an idea he’d scoffed at. It just wasn’t ever one of his priorities, ‘twas all. Tanabe Yutaka was rarely captivated by anyone in his sight – not saying that he was picky, because he really didn’t think he was – but he’d always thought things would fall into the natural pattern as he grew up and got a job; he’d find a nice, pleasant girl to settle down with, perhaps someone in the medical field, and they’d spend the rest of their lives dedicating it to helping people and saving lives.  
   
He never, in his wildest dreams, had expected, _well_ , this.  
   
Yutaka wasn’t even really sure why he’d put up an advertisement looking for a roommate. His parents had bought him this nice and big apartment near the city, and was more than happy to have him live in it alone, knowing that Yutaka had always rather liked his privacy. Yutaka didn’t even need the extra cash; he had a steady flow of monthly allowances coming in from his parents, since they didn’t want their beloved (and only) son to have to juggle both work and studies at the same time. Perhaps it was the fact that things had gotten a little routine around here, and perhaps one day Yutaka had just grown fed up of it all. Maybe a roommate would be nice. Maybe he’d actually have someone to binge on pizza with. Maybe they’d share his love of horror movies. Maybe they’d actually coerce Yutaka into having three daily meals, since his bad habits meant he often forgot to eat. At the end of it all, having someone to talk to outside of school would be… uh, well, healthier than whatever Yutaka was doing now.  
   
And _then_ Yuu entered into his life.  
   
Yutaka must have turned away at least five applicants before _he_ came along. There was that middle-aged salaryman, that runaway underaged school girl, that shifty-looking man who looked too stoned to be conscious… You get the point. They were either too old, too _illegal_ , too suspicious, or just – well – Yutaka wasn’t much of a people person, and he really needed to find someone he thought he could get along well with.  
   
And then he opened his apartment door to a perky raven-haired knocking on it zealously one afternoon, enquiring if the spare room was still available, and _if perhaps the rent was slightly negotiable because he’s been working three jobs so far and it’s been hell making ends meet –_  
   
– and Yutaka was sold.  
   
Yuu was naturally affable. They just… _clicked_. And maybe half of it had to do with how easy on the eyes Yuu was, but Yutaka was never going to admit that to himself. Well, not at this point. Yuu was just a year younger than him, and though they both majored in different things, they shared plenty of common interests, and Yuu seemed to find humour in everything Yutaka said. His pretty pink lips would part and he’d break into that beautiful laugh of his, and his head would fall to the side, gazing to Yutaka amusedly. And it’d make Yutaka’s heart beat a thousand times per second. It made Yutaka feel… _important._  
   
At some point, Yutaka found that he had started waking up for the mornings he would spend over the breakfast table with his newfound roommate, who held the darkest, brightest, moonlit eyes, and the most dazzling smile. Yuu could carry a conversation anytime, anywhere, about anything in the world, and it was good, because Yutaka never felt compelled to talk much, but with Yuu it came so naturally, so freely. Yuu was a good people observer; he’d take note of all of Yutaka’s quirky habits and his social cues, and he’d adapt himself accordingly, never stepping beyond boundaries or making Yutaka feel uncomfortable in any way. Yuu had a gifted talent for being able to readily please his company and make them feel at ease, and Yutaka soaked it all up.  
   
It took _months_ to come to terms with his growing feelings for the gorgeous raven-haired, and Yutaka had only come to full realization the extent he cared for his roommate when one night Yuu came home at two in the morning, and Yutaka hadn’t slept a single wink, having stayed up all night waiting for him. He’d been worried sick for Yuu, since the raven would usually inform him of his schedule – but this time the raven hadn’t, clearly having forgotten accidentally.  
   
(Well, it better had been an accident.)  
  
What Yutaka later came to comprehend though, was that he hadn’t been simply worried about Yuu’s safety. His entire mind had been clouded with anxious thoughts and impossible scenarios of Yuu spending the night at another man’s place, and it’d utterly destroyed Yutaka’s confidence and wrecked his heart. He didn’t fancy the thought of Yuu smiling and laughing at another man’s jokes the same way he did for Yutaka’s, and he didn’t want to even think about Yuu enjoying someone’s company more than him.  
   
That was when he realized he was probably in love with the raven.  
   
It took him an additional month to _even_ contemplate asking Yuu out, and today Yutaka thought he would finally do it. He had to summon his non-existent courage, and do something for himself, _dammit_. Sure, they spent many nights together marathoning late night shows in the apartment – despite Yuu’s cordial personality, the raven enjoyed a close circle of friends, another aspect Yutaka liked about him – but Yutaka wanted something… _more_. Yutaka wanted to take Yuu out on a proper date, catch a movie, grab a nice dinner, and do all the things a normal couple would do. They hadn’t actually dined out together as of yet, and Yutaka thought it’d be nice if the first time that they did so, it would be on their first date.  
   
Yutaka wasn’t sure if Yuu felt the same, really. Yuu was nice to him – sometimes _overly_ nice – but at the same time, Yutaka was certain Yuu was nice to everyone generally. Still, Yuu was always overly affectionate with him, despite only knowing him for a few months; and the raven hadn’t flinched a single time whenever Yutaka scooted just a tad inch closer to him on the sofa, or backed away whenever their hands touched when they reached for the same bag of chips. All of those incidents weren’t just coincidental, right? Even if Yuu didn’t like _like_ him, they obviously spent a whole lot of time together, and Yuu would only do so if it was as enjoyable for him as it was for Yutaka. Surely the raven would give Yutaka a chance, especially when they had chemistry so good it drove Yutaka _insane_.  
   
So, he resolved to himself. He’d do it. Today. He’d ask Yuu if he’d like to go out for dinner tonight – all on him. Yutaka would have to bring Yuu to a nice fine-dining restaurant, of course. It was only right, when Yutaka came from such an affluent background, and was the one and only son of high-flying doctors. He’d show Yuu a side of him that Yuu hadn’t ever seen before. And Yutaka knew that he looked like a mess most of the time, _yes,_ but he was sure that if he put in some effort and gelled his hair up and put on clothes well fit for a – well, _man_ – Yuu would be impressed. Yutaka would admit that he was awkward most times, but he’d really try to put in an effort this time to show Yuu just how much the raven mattered to him.  
   
Besides, whenever he was with Yuu, he felt happy and wanted and _free_ , and suddenly he was turning into the outgoing, humorous, quick-witted Yutaka he knew he was always meant to be – not the boring, stiff, lackluster Yutaka that seemed to take over him the rest of the time. Yuu made him feel _amazing_ , and Yutaka found that he’d like to try for him. He’d do his best to become someone worthy of Yuu; someone Yuu could be proud of. He’d never felt this way for anyone before. He was positively sure Yuu was _the one._  
   
Yutaka was so nervous about breaking the big question that he couldn’t even concentrate on his books the entire morning. His heart wouldn’t stop battering _hard_ against his chest, pondering even the slightest possibility of Yuu turning him down and apologetically mouthing to him that they should ‘remain friends’… And he nearly convinced himself it wasn’t a good idea to be asking Yuu out so early in their friendship, but then Yutaka reminded himself he must have known Yuu for five odd months now, and that was plenty of time to get to know someone. It wasn’t as if Yutaka wasn’t sure about his decision. He _was._ A little too much, in fact. But at the same time, it frightened him how much he’d begun placing his heart in Yuu’s care, even without the raven-haired knowing.  
   
Yuu could crush it anytime, anyway he wanted, and he wouldn’t even know.  
   
Yuu eventually returned from his daily morning shift at the departmental store, as Yutaka knew he would. The raven-haired was used to stopping by after his work shifts and changing out into clothes more appropriate for school, and Yutaka knew this was the opportune time to catch Yuu and – hopefully – successfully ask him out on a date.  
   
_God_ , Yutaka was feeling so anxious now he could hurl anytime.  
   
“I’m home!” Yuu’s voice rang out, the moment the apartment door was flung open to announce his entrance. Yutaka tensed up and almost stood up to greet him, but then the raven was speed walking across the living room, not even offering Yutaka a single glance in his way, half panting as he hurried to his room.  
   
“Gotta rush. First day of the new term today, and I haven’t even checked out where my class is at yet. My manager was being a complete asshole today and kept me twenty minutes past my shift. _Ugh_.”  
   
And then Yuu’s bedroom door was slammed to a tight shut.  
   
_Geez._ It was almost like a one-way conversation. Yutaka rubbed his palms together sweatily, and got up from his seat at the dining table, deciding to head over to Yuu’s room instead. Perhaps it’d be easier to talk to the raven while he was preparing for class. Yutaka’s fingers moved up to adjust his reading glasses shakily, feeling tremors run down his hands like never before. He was going to do it. He was going to ask him out. He was going to ask the most stunning human being he’d ever seen _out_.  
   
So Yutaka knocked on Yuu’s door, slightly trembling, and entered only when Yuu gave him the OK to do so.  
   
~  
   
… _Um._  
   
There Yuu was, in the midst of pulling a tight shirt off his rather fair and supple-looking chest, evidently stuck in a very compromising position. _Ugh_... Yutaka felt himself heat up at the crude sight. He hadn’t seen Yuu topless much, and _this…_ Well, it was just a bit too much for Yutaka to be able to… _endure_ with. Yuu obviously wasn’t very muscular, because he was never built that way; but the raven was all kinds of slender and lithe, and it was almost graceful, the way Yuu orchestrated his every action. Yuu was so slim and tender; the ideal built to pull into your arms with…   
   
_If only Yutaka could hold that body to sleep every night…_  
   
“Uh, don’t mind me,” Yuu laughed nervously, jumping and prancing around up and down perplexingly. “A little stuck. They always downsize my clothes at work! I wonder why. It’s annoying. It’s so tight all the time.”  
   
_I’m pretty sure I know the reason why_ , Yutaka thought quietly to himself.  
   
And just when he cleared his throat and was about to offer his help himself (though Yutaka was sure he’d have to run off to the bathroom right after doing so, since he couldn’t take any chances of… _you know_ being seen), Yuu’s shirt suddenly popped off, and the raven was quickly turning to the closet in front of him, tipping on his toes and reaching for new clothes hanging up top.  
   
“So, what’s up?” Yuu asked, tugging an expensive-looking sweater off a hanger. “You need me for something?”  
   
Yutaka’s heart thundered crazily in his chest.  
   
That was it. That was his opening.  
   
And Yutaka had been practicing his lines all morning – but suddenly none of it was coming out. _Fuck._  
   
_Tanabe Yutaka, you are not about to screw this up. Not now. Not like this. Please. Jesus fuck. Just say it. Tell him you want to take him out._  
   
“Uh, um,” Yutaka’s mind reached an ultimate blank. “Uh. So. D…Do… Um. N… Nice… top.”  
   
Jesus Christ. What the insane fuck was _that_? Oh my god – it was like he suddenly lost all grasp of the English language. It suddenly occurred to Yutaka that perhaps his lack of love life was due to his non-existent flirting skills, _not_ his reluctance in having one. As if Yutaka had any sort of game with his sort of confidence. The last time he had a girlfriend, it had been the girl herself who had confessed first, and Yutaka had sort of fallen into it; only because all of his other friends were dating, and he thought it was only natural he should, too. He couldn’t even remember her last name at this point.  
   
“Thanks! A friend got it for me. Said it was a new collection, something like that,” Yuu shrugged, brushing the comment off. “I just like the colour. I think mint blue’s a great colour.”  
   
Yutaka wondered briefly what kind of friends Yuu must have to be able to afford one hundred percent cashmere, but he didn’t think to raise such a point up.  
   
“Anyway, any clue where SRC-11 must be?” Yuu had ventured to the dressing table by now, having picked up an eyeliner in hand. He slicked his shoulder-length hair back, keeping it out of the way, and focused intensely on lining his eyes. Yutaka admired the sight of Yuu making himself up prettily like that; the raven was _so_ bewitching. The medical student could stare at him all day like this, just observing and watching Yuu go about doing mundane things, and Yutaka wouldn’t even get bored. Yuu was like an art masterpiece; perfectly carved, with movements always so precise and elegant.  
   
Yuu was perfect no matter what he did.  
   
“Uh, hellooo? Earth to Yutaka?” Yuu chirped, lining his other eye now. “I’m going to be late. And I _still_ have no clue where that lecture theatre is. Would you know, anyway? It shouldn’t be anywhere near the medical faculty. Hn. Come to think of it, your medical school’s kind of exclusive, isn’t it? You should take me on a tour sometime. It’s grand, and big, and looks reaaal expensive–”  
   
“Um,” Yutaka started fidgeting with his hands, barely able to apprehend Yuu’s incessant rambling. “Yuu, I have something to ask you.”  
   
“Yeah?” Yuu answered.  
   
And then he was spinning effortlessly around, his lips curving up into a soft smile to meet Yutaka’s face. Yutaka’s heart ceased beating. Great. He forgot what he was supposed to say again. How the _fuck_ was it possible for someone to be so attractive?  
   
“Y… You… wouldn’t befreetonight,” Yutaka managed out in a terrified, hurried squeak. “Would you…?”  
   
Holy shit. He actually did it.  
   
OK, he didn’t do it in a very explicitly clear manner per say, but he did it. Cut him some slack. Yutaka couldn’t even remember the last time he’d asked someone out, if even at all.  
   
“Oh, tonight?” Yuu didn’t seem to be surprised at all by the question, which was a little disappointing. Or had Yuu been waiting to be asked out all these while? It confused Yutaka. “Tonight’s not such a good time… I promised my friend dinner. What’s up? Did you want to grab some pizza tonight?”  
   
Oh. He didn’t get it.  
   
Yutaka tried to hide his disappointment. The raven had assumed Yutaka was asking to hang out – simply as roommates. “Actually… I was thinking something more of the lines of a movie,” the brunet asked, quietly, already feeling disheartened. “I remember you mentioned you wanted to catch that new horror flick we haven’t gotten around to watching.”  
   
“Oh, that’d be nice,” Yuu smiled pleasantly, then turned back to the mirror, ending off with the finishing touches on his eyes. “Maybe we could go catch it this weekend, or something. Tonight’s no good.”  
   
Yutaka lightened up a bit – Yuu was agreeing to go see a movie with him, but his nonchalance in the matter made it apparent that the raven obviously didn’t think it was an outright date.  
   
“Actually–” Yutaka chewed on his lip, wondering how he should get this across. “I was, uh, thinking of paying. For a movie. And dinner. I’d buy you dinner, and stuff… Uh. Would that… be something you’d want?”  
   
Yuu snorted with a laugh, then placed his eyeliner down. “Movie _and_ dinner? Why are you suddenly feeling so generous? Is this because I’ve been doing laundry?”  
   
Oh, _for god’s sake_.  
   
“Anyway, I’ll take you up on that offer,” Yuu sang happily, delivering a cute wink to his brunet roommate. The raven was still oblivious; and Yutaka felt his heart stuck in his throat. Perhaps he was going about it the wrong way. Perhaps Yuu simply wanted to take things slow, and Yutaka could make his intentions even more known over their little… date. If it was even considered a date in Yuu’s eyes, that was. At least Yutaka _tried,_ right? Why wasn’t Yuu getting it, though? Was he doing it on purpose, or was he truly oblivious? It made Yutaka feel dumb, but he was willing to place on his bets on Yuu being too naïve to see the truth. Yuu really was too innocent for his own good, after all.  
   
“Hey, I have to go now,” Yuu announced, grabbing the haversack he’d tossed onto the bed this morning. Eh? Yutaka squinted at the sight – he hadn’t ever seen that bag before. It looked fairly new, and had a shiny, classy logo stuck to it that Yutaka was pretty sure belonged to a luxury brand; one that sold items in the thousands. In fact, Yutaka was _even_ sure he’d seen his mother carry a bag with a similar logo before…  
   
“Aw,” Yuu moaned aloud, looking at the time on his phone. “I’m _really_ going to be late now. And I still have to find that darned theatre…”  
   
“Nice bag,” Yutaka remarked casually, quite absent-mindedly.  
   
“Thanks! Got it as a gift,” Yuu beamed, looking pridefully down to the bag he was clutching to his chest. “A bit too showy for my tastes, but my previous bag broke, and I got this as a gift, anyway. Anyway, I gotta go! I might stay over at my friend’s place today, so don’t wait up for me. I’ll text you, okay?”  
   
“Okay,” Yutaka responded, smiling himself now that Yuu had uttered promises of future texts.  
   
Mission: _ask Yuu out on a date_ was kind of successful, hadn’t it? Yutaka would like to think so.  
   
Now all he needed to do next, was make Yuu realize their date was, uh, an _actual_ date. But Yutaka was certain Yuu would come to realize that soon enough, once he was seated in a fancy restaurant, and gifted a bouquet of roses. Right. Yutaka would have to get roses. Maybe a teddy bear, too, in case Yuu was into those things. But wait – he hadn’t actually seen Yuu with stuffed toys, had he? Maybe Yuu hated them. _Ah,_ he’d scrap that idea. Wait, how about some chocolates…  
   
~  
   
He’d done it.  
   
He’d done it for _real,_ this time. A brand new start in his life. Takanori had affectionately termed it “Takanori 2.0” in his head, and thought himself to be rather smart for doing so. It’d taken Takanori a whole lot of courage, heart and soul to do so, but he did it. He had kicked his bastard of a boyfriend out of his apartment – that Takanori was paying, mind you, and he wasn’t even financially stable to start with – after he’d caught him in bed with another man, right before his eyes. Not just a man, too; it had to be a younger, thinner, much hotter model, of course. Kaolu had to have his tastes in check. The sham of a make-up artist was well known for fucking around with his clients, but Takanori had been blinded for too long by his overwhelming infatuation with the man to accept that.  
   
The brunet couldn’t blamed; he’d met Kaolu at eighteen at a fashion show he _wasn’t_ supposed to wander in to, and stayed with him ever since. Takanori thought he’d found the epitome of love in Kaolu. They had made plans to travel the world, get married eventually, and live out the rest of their lives together. Kaolu _got_ him. Kaolu understood Takanori in ways like no other. Takanori’s shaky relationship with his parents meant that they never could grapple with Takanori’s obvious homosexuality and his keen interest in fashion, and Takanori found all of that in Kaolu. The man’s liberated, fucked up soul inspired Takanori and encouraged his deviant tendencies.  
   
And so the innocent lamb got eaten up by the big, bad wolf. On the grounds of forbidden, romantic love; baited with endless promises of a glamorous future Takanori thought he could have. He had always wanted to be fashion designer, just in case you never knew. He had always been drawing in sketchbooks, sketching infinite number of pieces that Takanori hoped would make it to the runway someday. He sketched even more after he met Kaolu… after meeting what he’d thought was the man of his dreams. Kaolu’s avant-garde and unorthodox style influenced Takanori a great bit – and with every fashion show Kaolu brought him to, Takanori saw himself a step nearer to the life that he wanted. He would make it big. He _would_ work hard on his designs, and build a fashion empire of his own. He would accomplish all of that, and then he’d prove to his parents he wasn’t a complete failure of a son. Takanori would have something to his name…  
   
Who knew the man of your dreams could turn into your worst, personal enemy, too? Kaolu had been encouraging at first, flattered that Takanori would model Kaolu after his every design, and looking back on it now, Takanori was sure Kaolu only liked the attention; because by the time Takanori’s dreams started taking shape, and he spoke more and more of meeting with other fashion designers on the scene for potential collaborations, Kaolu grew furious. And envy was never a good color on anyone. Kaolu believed Takanori’s entrance into the fashion world had been all thanks to him – and he could so easily rip it away from Takanori as quickly as he’d given it to him.  
   
Takanori came home one day, to piles of his fashion designs being burned in a fire, but even then, he’d excused Kaolu’s jealousy and toxic behavior as out of love and concern for the brunet. _You wouldn’t be able to handle it_ , Kaolu would remark, over and over again, belitting the younger man. _Your designs are poor, and so unoriginal. I’ve done a million of these fashion shows. I know what the industry wants. You don’t have it. Stop trying, Taka. It’s almost pathetic_.  
   
What was _really_ pathetic was Takanori withstanding all of that emotional and manipulative abuse, and not saying a single thing. Kaolu was his one true love, he wouldn’t hurt him intentionally, yadda yadda… Takanori had come up with every possible excuse in the book to justify his boyfriend’s fatal behavior. What the hell was Kaolu so afraid of, anyway? That Takanori would be the more successful one out of them two? They were both working in different fields, Jesus Christ. Takanori, fashion, and Kaolu, make-up. They could even have collaborated and created fashion ventures together. What a selfish asshole.  
   
And Takanori had even been denying his cheating ways for so long, ignoring the midnight texts that would come in, enduring the nights he’d had to spend alone, curling up in a bed that was void of his boyfriend’s warmth. He’d felt so left behind, for the longest time, felt so worthless, unlikeable, unwanted.  
   
Takanori was bound to snap. It was only a matter of time, and the appropriate reason for it.  
   
And when he witnessed the very fact that confirmed that _yes_ , Kaolu didn’t want him anymore, and _yes_ , he had only ever been a doll-like pretty face to Kaolu to play around with, something in Takanori came apart. He was surprised he didn’t go insane. He’d simply thrown everything of Kaolu’s out, ‘cept for that shitty coffee maker that Kaolu had bought for him as their anniversary present. Takanori had purchased him an entire _limited edition_ make-up set for that occasion, by the way. Ungrateful, shitty prick.  
   
By the time everything of Kaolu’s had vanished in sight from his apartment, Takanori realized he never really had much of Kaolu to remember him by. It was as if he was gone with the wind. It was almost like Kaolu never existed. It was funny, how someone could shatter every bit of the self-love they had built up in you, and tear you right apart, and then disappear out of your life like they hadn’t done any damage at all. Takanori felt empty, yes, and completely frightened of being alone – but he knew he would never take Kaolu back. Not in a million years. Not when Kaolu had done an irreversible number on him. Not when Takanori wasn’t ever sure if everything could be okay again.  
   
Takanori could _pretend_ , but it wouldn’t ever be the same.  
   
You just don’t recover from psychological damage like that.  
   
Takanori ended up applying for the first course that caught his eye at university. English, right? It was a rather odd major for Takanori to be taking up, but he’d always been interested in language, and he’d always thought to himself that if he didn’t become a fashion designer, he’d become a writer of some sort. Perhaps even a lyricist. His mother had forced him to take piano lessons since the age of seven, after all. Takanori could play a note or two. Takanori wasn’t too exactly sure what he wanted to do with his life as of yet, but this could be a start.  
   
Out with fashion designing, in with becoming a writer.  
   
Out with the old Takanori, in with Takanori 2.0.  
   
He’d become more than just a doll-face; a minor plaything. And looking down to his phone screen that had _just_ lighted up with a new text from his ex, Takanori thought resolutely to himself –  
   
**_K_ : **_fxxx you you fxxking ungrateful bitch you don’t fxxking deserve anything good in your life i hope your next boyfriend burns you in a fire and you die you crazy slut_  
   
– he’d show him.  
   
~  
   
He did it.  
   
_Oh,_ thank god, he did it. Yuu had made it on time for his lecture, despite having spent the past ten minutes running around like a headless chicken on campus. Why was this darn college so big? There were rooms Yuu had never even been in to. On hindsight, Yuu thought as he slid into an empty row of seats, he shouldn’t have worried too much about being late. Half of the place hadn’t even been filled up as of yet, and when Yuu glanced to the clock, there was still ten minutes to go before the lecture even started. At least he was getting this term off to a great start.  
   
_God,_ he really hated that manager of his. He always got held back unnecessarily at that job, and never got paid overtime, too. Thankfully, though, he’d just begun trying out this new ‘sugar dating’ thing, just a little something he’d begun exploring after overhearing it being talked about between two customers that had entered the store sometime last month. A girl had been lamenting about her overdue rent as she fingered discounted clothing longingly, and her friend had jokingly suggested the prospects of ‘sugar dating’. Once Yuu heard the words _you get like, $500 per date_ leave the friend’s mouth, the raven-haired was won over. He hardly made five hundred bucks in a week. He was grossly underpaid and overworked, and he desperately needed an ‘out’ of this situation he was in.  
   
And so started the casual dates he would go on. He hadn’t been too picky at first; he accepted as little as a hundred bucks to go on casual dates with strange men, no hanky-panky, but the more dates he accepted, the more he realized he was being shortchanged. So a hundred bucks rose up to two, and then to five, and then suddenly he was being gifted Hermes bags and Fendi watches _and_ credit cards with $3,000 credit limits. And _then_ he was talking business.  
   
It was just something new he was trying out – he didn’t think he’d let it be permanent, or anything. But at the rate that he was being paid, so lavishly for nothing but his time, too; Yuu was already thinking of quitting his two out of three part-time jobs and possibly making sugar dating a full-time thing. Yuu had always been good with analyzing people and what they wanted, and had often thought his social skills could be put to good use. It helped that Yuu bothered to make himself up to appeal to these older men’s tastes – his age clearly played a factor, and he would play his innocence as much as he could possibly could to squeeze the most money out of them.  
   
Tonight’s date would be his fourth date with an attorney. Recently divorced and in his early forties, he was actually the most decent one Yuu had met so far; he hadn’t pressed for sex, or severely undervalued Yuu’s time spent with him. Yuu had a good feeling about this one… He might even have potential to become a regular. It helped that the attorney was good-looking, too, and looked more to be in his mid-thirties than his real age. Yuu truly enjoyed the time spent with him, since the attorney actually bothered to engage Yuu and find out more about his interests and personality, rather than simply use Yuu as a sponge to air all of his grievances and personal issues out. Yuu was human _too_ , and the attorney was one of the few sugar daddies to realize that. Heck, he might be the only sugar daddy at this point to.  
   
“Mind if I take a seat next to you?” A hopeful voice echoed from above, and Yuu found himself looking up, startled, meeting with deep, auburn eyes of a brunet. The man exuded boldness and charisma all around him; and even though he was only dressed in a long T-shirt and tight leather pants, the brunet made everything look so effortlessly stylish, with numerous silver necklaces hanging off his deep V neckline, and his fingers stacked full with flashy rings. Wow, Yuu had never seen anyone so fashionably dressed around these parts before. Was he a fashion major? But then again, this was a linguistics class…  
   
“Of course!” Yuu chirped, scooting over to make space. The brunet’s eyes brightened up at his reply, and soon sat himself down next to the raven, letting slip his mask of confidence for a moment. Yuu caught sight of an awkward smile lingering upon the brunet’s lips, and thought to himself that it was cute.  
   
“I’m sort of new here,” the brunet said, introducing himself. “My name’s Takanori. What’s yours?”  
   
“Oh, uh, I’m Yuu,” Yuu grinned enthusiastically back. “Don’t worry, you’ll get the hang of things around here pretty quickly.”  
   
“I sure hope so,” Takanori smiled wider, appreciative of Yuu’s friendliness. “I hope you don’t mind me sitting here. It’s just – you’re the only one in here wearing a D&G sweater. I trust you.”  
   
It took Yuu a full second to digest that. And when it sunk down into his head, the raven was erupting into a giggle. Takanori had said that _so_ off-handedly, it felt like it was just something that the brunet was used to saying on a daily basis. Yuu liked Takanori already. Takanori frowned slightly at Yuu’s reaction, wondering if he’d said something wrong.  
   
“Uh, it was a gift,” Yuu continued giggling, though he tried to stop, knowing it was rude to do so. “You’re interesting.”  
   
Takanori eyed him with a coy smile and a raised eyebrow. So his new classmate found him peculiar. “ _You’re_ the one that’s interesting. A D&G sweater and a Hermes haversack? I call that good taste. And you have rich friends.”  
   
Well, Yuu couldn’t help it if his sugar daddies insisted on gifting him items, and often brought Yuu into such stores to make him pick things out. Of course Yuu would pick out something practical – he needed a new bagpack, after all, and sweaters were always nice. It was going to be a problem, though, if Takanori was able to keep identifying his gifts like these…  
   
Yuu attempted to shift the focus away from him. “How do you know what sweater is from where, anyway? I can never do it. They all look pretty similar to me.”  
   
Takanori shrugged, not wanting to delve too much into his endeavours in the fashion world. “Oh, let’s just say I’m pretty much into fashion.” He still wasn’t sure if he sucked at it or not, since he never got the chance to give it a try, but he had knowledge in that area, at the very least.  
   
“Clearly!” Yuu smiled welcomingly to the brunet, and Takanori found himself smiling back. Things were looking brighter, already. “You must be so smart. I bet you read fashion catalogues for breakfast.”  
   
Takanori was about to say _well, yes, I do, I’m subscribed to a couple of issues actually –_ then realized Yuu was probably making a joke. Ah, Kaolu had ruined every last sense of humour Takanori must have had. What a pain in the ass.    
   
“Hey, Takanori, wanna grab lunch after this?” Yuu asked casually. “I’ll show you all the good eating places around here.”  
   
…Lunch?  
   
Takanori was slightly taken aback by the sudden invitation.  
   
“Oh, uh. That’d be nice.”  
   
Wow, Takanori hadn’t even contemplated lunch with anyone else before. After his asshole boyfriend stopped coming home to eat with him, preferring to eat out instead (and by eat out he literally meant that in the figurative and most literal sense), Takanori had gotten used to having his meals alone.  
   
“Great! It’s always nice to make new friends,” Yuu smiled, and then it struck the brunet.  
   
It dawned unto him that Yuu’s invitation was more than just a simple lunch invite; the raven was openly allowing him to be his… friend?  
   
Wow. What an odd term. Takanori blinked, once, twice, and felt a small lump rise up to his throat. This feeling was foreign. It really was rather strange. He’d spent far too long a time cooped up in that apartment of his, waiting for a lover that didn’t even want to come home. Takanori had spent too much time living in his ex’s shadows; he’d hidden himself away for the sake of appeasing his lover. He’d compromised his heart for the sake of others. He’d forgotten what it meant to be wanted by people.  
   
And here he was, making his first friend in the longest time. He was actually making progress, all in a day’s work. Good job, Takanori 2.0. You go, Takanori 2.0.  
   
“That’d be… more than nice, actually,” Takanori nodded his head, smiling the widest he’d ever done so in _years_ , feeling the new beginnings of Takanori 2.0 already begin to take shape.  
   
Even the air here felt easier to breathe in, already.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I keep telling myself I have no time to write but I do it anyways ^^;;;;; sorry to be excessive again :---D here's another side-story! I hope you're as excited by the prospect of it as much as I am. I'm going to keep this one short, but I just wanted to explore another dimension to SA that I think you guys will be interested to know! It's nice to find out a bit more about their beginnings, isn't it? XD
> 
> (Sorry, I probably just needed another excuse to write one-sided Kaoi. I'm terrible, I know. I already see people banging on my door asking BUT WHAT ABOUT PRESENT YUTAKA/YUU? WHY WON'T YOU LET THEM MEET!!!! :----D I have no answer to that, sorry. You'll just have to see if I ever get around to it. XD)
> 
> Appreciate comments as usual, thank you. <3
> 
> (Lololol, SA is back to /?. It was nice having it rest at 65/65 for awhile. XD though I love it when you guys get anxious. I leave it at a full number just to take the stress off my shoulders sometimes ^^;;)


	67. Prequel II

“Look at _you_ ,” and the older man’s words that received Yuu as he slipped into the front passenger seat was enough to tug the raven’s lips up into a shy, abashed smile. Yuu tugged a long hair strand behind his ear nervously, unable to hide his wide beam as he strapped the seatbelt over himself. Die was picking Yuu up in his shiny Ferrari for yet another date of theirs, and Yuu was genuinely happy to be spending more time with such a promising, wealthy, older man. Yuu was good with people generally, yes, but it helped that Die was naturally easy to get along with, and had youthful charm and humour that most men his age didn’t have. He seemed completely taken with Yuu, too, which made the raven-haired feel good about himself. Die was completely smitten and besotted with Yuu’s presence, and Yuu knew he had the man strung along his fingertips.  
   
“This pair of jeans looks so good on you.”  
   
Yuu was too happy to hear the remark, and made sure to only respond with another compliment.  
   
“It’s only because you have such good taste. I wanted to look good _for you_ …”  
   
He could see the mark of approval in Die’s eyes at what he’d just uttered, and Yuu knew he’d scored another point with the older man. He knew as much as men in power like Die loved dishing out praises like these to their… companions, they loved knowing that Yuu only bothered doing so for _their_ eyes and their eyes _only_.  
   
The denim jeans had been bought by Die for him on their previous date, when Die had taken him out shopping for the very first time – something that had opened Yuu’s mind up to a whole new world of possibilities with that very treat. He had never been so fancily taken out to shop for material goods for himself by other men before, and here he was, having actively landed himself a sugar daddy that held promises of showering him with more expensive gifts and much more shopping sprees in time to come. It was exciting to think up of all the prospects; Yuu would never have to purchase another thing with his own money again (or, well, as long as he indulged in this sugar baby thing), and instead delegate the allowances he earned straight to his savings. Hopefully this meant his rent and student loan would be paid off in no time…  
   
Yuu hadn’t realized Die’s eyes had remained fixated upon him this whole time, until the twenty-year-old university student lifted his eyes back up to meet with the dark-haired attorney’s; and it was only when their eyes met that Yuu felt his heart pump nervously in his chest, finding the act – all of a sudden – way too intimate. It was so strange, the way these men looked at him. Yuu knew he was significantly younger than them – half their age, _even_ – but the way his sugar daddies looked at him always made him feel like he was… some sort of trophy prize. Some sort of coveted jewel; some kind of unattainable treasure. It was as if they couldn’t believe they had landed such a young, pretty beau by their side, and they delighted in every second of having Yuu with them, entirely fascinated by every little thing Yuu did or said. Yuu felt like he was being handled like glass, sometimes. Or a highly hankered after porcelain vase, at a rich man’s auction.  
   
“How was school, sweetie? You started your new term today, right?” A hand of Die’s extended out to grip lightly at the base of Yuu’s jaw, tilting the raven’s head up to maintain eye contact with him. Yuu blinked up to the older man, startled by the gesture, but acknowledged the man probably wanted to remain in control.  
   
“It was fine! Had an interesting lecture today. Made a new friend, too,” Yuu dutifully informed, a radiant glow on his face. Die appeared satisfied with his answer, glad to see Yuu’s cheeriness about it all. Then, in a rather calculated move, Yuu willed his eyes to flutter to the side, looking coy and shy as he said words he knew Die would appreciate:  
   
“I was looking forward the whole time to our date, of course… I wanted to see you again.”  
   
Or, well, Yuu had been looking forward to seeing the big pay-out he’d be getting after the entire date was over. Same thing. Yadda, yadda. Semantics.  
   
“I was looking forward all day to seeing your pretty little face and cute little smile, too,” Die grinned smugly at what he’d just heard. Yuu always knew the right things to say – perhaps this was why he enjoyed Yuu’s company so much. Yuu constantly made Die feel wanted and _needed_ , and Die wanted nothing more than to pamper Yuu into oblivion and make sure Yuu never lacked anything he needed. Who could resist such a sweet face and alluring body?  
   
“C’mere,” Die beckoned, and as Yuu leaned in to him with wide eyes oozing out distinct confusion, the dark-haired attorney gently pressed his lips against Yuu’s forehead, sending tingles down the raven-haired student’s spine. Such an affectionate gesture, bestowed upon him by his sugar daddy… Yuu basked in the feeling, liking how small and fragile and _loved_ he really felt within Die’s grasp. Perhaps this was why he enjoyed being a sugar baby the most, after all; it gave Yuu reason to act more delicate, and have his every whim and whine catered to. No sugar daddy could bear to see their precious _baby_ in pain.  
   
Yuu made a soft whimper as Die’s lips left his skin, clearly having liked the attention and act of comfort. Die simply smiled to him, his eyes containing a hint of amusement at how Yuu played up his kittenish role so easily. Yuu really was so _spoilt_. And it overwhelmed Die with feelings of _want_ , to monopolize him…  
   
“How was work?” Yuu asked, with shimmering eyes and a flirty giggle. He wasn’t really interested in finding out about Die’s day, but knew one of the key points of getting these older men to remain interested in him was to get them to talk about themselves. Yuu already knew he had Die completely enraptured, though – the older man was most definitely relishing in Yuu’s every word and his every move.  
   
_God,_ the knowledge that Yuu held all the power felt good.  
   
“Busy, as usual. My clients can get difficult,” and Die’s face was evidently grumpy as he elaborated. “Whoever says they’re in corporate law because they’re passionate about it is lying.”  
   
“Aw… You always work so hard,” Yuu sighed out, making sure he looked nothing short of impressed at Die’s day, his fingers sliding skittishly up the side of Die’s jaw.  
   
“I’ll definitely make sure to _relax_ you, later. You deserve it, you poor thing…”  
   
And Yuu was incredibly playful as he said it, giggling softly to himself when he made the suggestive remark. Die had indicated to him through earlier texts that he would like Yuu to stay the night with him tonight, and though Yuu hadn’t explicitly agreed as of yet, the raven-haired thought he’d see how today’s date went by first before following him home. He hadn’t slept with any of his clients yet, and he wanted to make sure he was extremely safe and guarded in doing so. Die seemed harmless, but Yuu still couldn’t be too sure… Yuu certainly wasn’t going to risk being murdered in someone else’s home before Yuu’s life even began.  
   
“I only work so hard so I can afford you,” Die teased in return, and it prompted another giggle from the cute raven. Yuu didn’t come cheap, of course, and Die knew his finances were the only thing keeping the raven from going. “Let’s have a nice dinner, and then I’ll take you out to look at some of my favourite shops. You mentioned your old shoes were wearing out, didn’t you? I’ll get you a few new pairs…”  
   
Yuu’s eyes glistened at the prospect of more gifts headed his way. _Damn_. At this rate, he would have an entirely new wardrobe by the end of this whole sugar baby stint. Not like he was complaining.  
   
“That sounds _great_ ,” Yuu whispered excitedly, making sure his hands slid suggestively down Die’s thick and sturdy arms, squeezing at the muscles that lay underneath.  
   
~  
   
Three hours, an extravagant dinner and five name-brand shops later, Yuu was blissfully walking through the mall, clutching on to Die’s arm adorably with one hand, with three lightweight shopping bags hanging off his arm in another. The rest of his luxurious shopping loot had been instructed by Die to the complimentary bag valet service to be brought to his Ferrari, saving both of them the energy to carry it themselves. Life was just _so_ great when you had money.  
   
Yuu shuddered to think about the costs he had racked up in total in just three hours; he was beginning to combat this guilt by psychoing himself into no longer looking at the price tags whenever he shopped with his sugar daddies, since he knew the knowledge of such prices would turn him right off from shopping. Who would drop a thousand straight dollars on a mere _sweater_?! Yuu sure as hell wasn’t going to be making any noise about it if Die was perfectly fine with it, however. His company didn’t come cheap, and Die was prepared for all the accompanying costs the moment he agreed to such an arrangement with Yuu. It, technically, wasn’t Yuu’s _fault_.  
   
Yuu was beginning to get the hang of being a guiltless spendthrift. Yuu was no saint. He was going to take what he could get, when he still had his youth and looks to cling onto. He wasn’t going to be young and highly lusted for, forever.  
   
“…so Toshiya tells me he walks into the office at precisely 9 o’clock, and the client’s already seated there, looking like the whole world owes him a living. And when Toshiya asks the client what he can do for him, he tells him, he’s going to sue one of his suppliers…”  
   
_Blah blah blah_ , Yuu sang carefreely in his head as Die droned on and on, his eyes scanning past the shops that passed them by as they strolled across the mall. To be quite honest, Yuu enjoyed most aspects of being a sugar baby, _except_ for the part where he had to seem interested in listening to the mundane ramblings of their everyday life. Yuu could take an interesting story every now and then, and sometimes Die would have a big corporation scandal he’d dish about to Yuu – who would be privy to such _exciting_ information – but other times, Die simply went on about the dull annoyances of his life, and it bored Yuu to tears. Yuu still kept a wide, attentive smile on his face, though, showing no signs of his mind wandering elsewhere. He remembered to nod every now and then, laughing at all the appropriate moments, and leaning his head in against Die’s shoulder when Yuu wasn’t sure what he should do.  
   
“…so, naturally, Toshiya opens the case file and realizes that ‘ _Exquisite_ ’ was just another – _get this_ – ploy for the supplier to get in on some of the profit that was being secretly disseminated…”  
   
Yuu was trying his hardest to stifle every yawn that was forcing his goddamn mouth to open.  
   
“…so I told Toshiya, hey, man, you either do this case properly or you don’t, and so he turns to me and says–”  
   
And then Die stopped. He simply paused mid-way his ranting, and the sudden halt in pace was enough to send Yuu whipping his head back to look at Die curiously, wondering if anything was wrong. Die seemed temporarily stunned by the sight of something – or _someone_ – far off in the distance, and Yuu naturally followed his gaze, watching as the back figures of a blond-haired man and dark-haired woman disappeared into a high-end jewelry store. Yuu could only catch a glimpse of the couple, but he hadn’t missed the suave black business suit the blond had been wearing, and the exquisite pink silk dress the woman had been adorning.  
   
Who were they? Friends of Die’s, perhaps? They looked to be of high prestige, and could very well be people Die mixed with.  
   
“What’s wrong?” Yuu cooed cutely to the attorney, smiling up to the man he was clutching by the arm.  
   
Die’s blank face broke apart in an amused smile. “Nothing. Just saw some people I recognized.”  
   
Ah. Yuu knew it. “Rich friends of yours?” The raven joked. Peasants definitely did _not_ shop in this sort of high-grade mall.  
   
“Not really. One of them’s the CEO of a leading business corporation, and I’ve had to deal with the company on occasion in some of my work,” Die explained casually. “With such a large multinational corporation like that, you’re bound to get involved in plenty of lawsuits. People are always trying to get a cut of whatever you’re getting. It’s common in the business sphere.”  
   
“Oh,” Yuu responded absentmindedly, not _that_ interested in whoever the CEO was, anyway. It wasn’t like he was Yuu’s sugar daddy, financing his every whim. Until that happened, Yuu could give less of a fuck about who was suing who. “I guess he’s out shopping with his wife, then.”  
   
“Girlfriend,” Die corrected, shrugging. “Men like that don’t like to settle down too early. Strange, huh? I had settled down by the age of thirty. And see how well that worked out for me.” He ended it off with a couple of self-depreciating chuckles, looking more humoured than anything.  
   
Yuu pursed his lips into a big pout. “You wouldn’t have met _me_ if you didn’t. I consider that a blessing.”  
   
Die grinned. “I consider it a blessing, too, _honey_.” And he was squeezing Yuu into his grasp at that, wondering how he ever got so lucky.  
   
~  
   
“For fuck’s sake, Christine. I don’t think your great aunt is going to notice the difference between Akoya pearls or Tahitian pearls. They’re both the same.”  
   
Kouyou had no idea how he got roped into jewelry shopping with his girlfriend again, but it was a living nightmare. He had driven the demanding heiress to three malls by now, and they were on their _sixth_ jewelry store. How was it possible for pearl-necklace shopping to be so hard? And why was he even here, in the first place? He had much better things to do than wait for his girlfriend to stare at pearls for four straight hours and try to pick which looked the shinier of the two. They all looked shiny, and they all looked the _fucking_ same.  
   
Christine looked absolutely livid at what she’d just heard, and hastily placed the exorbitant pearl necklace she’d been holding back down onto the top of the glass case. “Of _course_ you wouldn’t understand. You haven’t been listening to what this poor man has been explaining nicely to us. You just keep texting Akira about work and replying to all these work emails and ignoring this whole gift-picking process… Is this even a joint gift from the both of us, or _me_?”  
   
Kouyou produced a sarcastic snort. Christine hated it when he did that – Kouyou always seemed adamant on showing how much he could care less about ‘trivial’ matters such as these. It was as if all that mattered to Kouyou was work, work, work, and everything else – including her – was beneath that on his list of priorities. And it served to make an _extremely_ attractive man, turn completely unattractive at all. So what if she had a handsome, billionaire boyfriend? He acted like a huge insensitive asshole most times, and never spared a thought for her feelings.  
   
“What are you talking about? Of course it’s from us. _I’m_ the one paying for it.” Kouyou sounded pissed off at Christine’s insinuation, not liking how he’d purposely taken time out of his neverending work schedule to accompany Christine on such a pointless trip, and yet still be yelled at for not putting in enough effort in this whole gift-picking process. What the hell did Christine want?  
   
Christine gritted her teeth at the tone of his voice. There Kouyou went, flaunting his control in the relationship again. It was as if just because he was successful in his work, and held an occupation that placed him high up on the social ladder – it meant that he could talk down to her and act as if he was entitled to making every decision for them both in this relationship. Kouyou was fucking _delusional_ if he thought Christine would take this lying down. Christine might not be savvy in the business sense, but she had her own family background to fall back against, and she could very well live off her own brand and prestige if she needed to do so. She didn’t need Kouyou’s filthy money.  
   
“You’re such an insensitive asshole, you know that?” Christine yelled, her anger getting the better of her, completely ignoring the fact that they were in public sphere, surrounded by shop staff that were trying their hardest to pretend they weren’t eavesdropping in on them. “I don’t need you to pay for this gift for my aunt. You know I could damn well pay for it myself. I’m only doing you a _service_ , helping you pick a gift because I know you wouldn’t be bothered to do so. You know how much my great aunt likes you, and you won’t even put in any effort for her.”  
   
Kouyou’s eyes narrowed into slits. Christine knew very well how prideful Kouyou was of himself, and to be yelled at by his girlfriend in such a public space must be putting him to horrid shame. There was no way Kouyou would leave this situation giving in to Christine. He was way too arrogant for that.  
   
“ _What_ are you insinuating, Christine? That I don’t care about… _what_? Tahitian pearls? Oh, I’m sure your great aunt will test me on my pearl knowledge. Thanks for the great tip. I’ve wanted, for all of my life, to be recognized as Takashima Kouyou, the wise ol’ pearl collector. It’s as if you don’t even realize I have an important job to do.”  
   
Christine had to turn her head away, swallowing back disappointed tears at how dismal the entire shopping trip had turned out. Kouyou always _had_ to be so sarcastic, didn’t he? It was as if it would kill him to be a little nicer to her, and not so inconsiderate. They had barely spent time together in the past few months because of how increasingly devoted Kouyou was to his career, and on one of the rare occasions Christine had managed to draw Kouyou out on a shopping trip – or a makeshift date, as Christine had hoped for – the older man was just taking every second as an opportunity to spew out how much he’d rather be in the office and not here, spending time with her, because he found it absolutely a waste of his valuable time.  
   
_I had to skip out on important meetings because of this_ , Kouyou had grumbled to her the first thing in the morning, not appreciative of the free time Christine had _begged_ Kouyou to let her have with him today. _You know poor Akira is double-booked today because of me? We were supposed to seal this business deal days ago._  
   
Well, fuck Akira, Christine had thought then. Fuck Akira, and fuck how much Kouyou cared about his emotional and mental well-being much more than hers. Akira might be Kouyou’s right-hand man, and his vice-president, but Christine was beginning to feel like Kouyou called and texted Akira twice as much as he did for Christine, and saw Akira’s face a whole lot more than his own girlfriend.  
   
Heck, Kouyou probably saw his secretary more than Christine herself. Sometimes Christine had to come to Kouyou’s office just to catch a glimpse of her boyfriend, and he wouldn’t even spare her more than a couple of glances. He wouldn’t even get up from his chair.  
   
“I don’t even know why you took today off to be with me,” Christine’s eyes had turned blank of emotion, her voice dead and void of any _ounce_ of ‘trying’. “You clearly don’t even want to be here. It’s like I’m keeping you prisoner.”  
   
Kouyou hissed. “Christine, don’t be unreasonable. I’ve spent all day with you, and _now_ you’re angry at me for doing so. I don’t get you at all. We could have picked that very first pearl necklace we saw in the first store and be done with it, but _no_ , Tahitian pearls are supposedly better. Jesus fuck, Christine. Great aunt is not going to care.”  
   
“Great aunt _will_ care!” Christine howled back. It caught Kouyou by surprise – as with the rest of the shop staff, who had furiously scurried to the back of the store in order to give the couple more privacy. “And you know why, Kouyou? Because she’ll know _we’ve_ put in effort in her little birthday gift. She’ll know _we’ve_ scouted everywhere just to find the perfect pearls for her. She’ll know _we’ve_ thought of her. Even something as simple as a gift. You don’t think she cares, but she does. You think only _you_ know how valuable your time is – well, newsflash – she knows, _too_. And that’s why she fucking cares. Because you took that time out of your busy life, to think of her, to do something nice for her, to make sure she’s happy. And that’s love.  
   
And love is not picking out the ‘first pearl necklace you saw’. That isn’t it, at all. But you wouldn’t know, would you? You always have something more important to do. You’ve neglected to think about the ones who truly love you. You think they’ll always stay.”  
   
By the time Christine was done with her little speech, she was panting, and completely breathless.  
   
And suddenly she wasn’t so sure if she was even talking about her great aunt anymore.  
   
Kouyou was taken aback by her heated outburst, and was frozen for a good few seconds, as if processing Christine’s words. There was a glimmer of hope in Christine’s eyes, wondering if perhaps she’d finally mustered enough energy and hurt to get her point across to the older man. Perhaps, just perhaps, Kouyou would finally… _get_ it. And perhaps those haunting thoughts of wanting to break-up with her boyfriend of six years would stop clouding her head. Those same thoughts have nagged at her for ages, and Christine had tossed them all aside in the name of love and pride. And perhaps this time, she would find something worth salvageable, after all.  
   
But old habits never change, and Kouyou was soon back to his same old frown a minute later, displeasure splashed right across his eyes.  
   
“Women,” Kouyou grimaced. “Always overthinking things.”  
   
_He hadn’t gotten it, at all._  
   
Christine’s throat got so choked up she couldn’t breathe.  
   
_I understand, then._  
   
“So, Akoya or Tahitian?” Kouyou continued, frustrated. “And _please_ don’t tell me we have to go to another jewelry store after this. It’s getting late, and I have to return to the office to meet with Akira after this.”  
   
Christine lost all fight in her.  
   
“Tahitian,” Christine answered, sheer exhaustion present in her voice.  
   
“Great.” Kouyou said, hurriedly whipping out his credit card from his wallet. The shop staff scurried back to the front, eagerly accepting the payment and wrapping the choice of necklace elaborately into a bag. “Then it’s settled, then. Great aunt will be very happy with this gift, I’m sure.”  
   
“I’m sure she will,” Christine responded, monotone.  
   
“I’m glad it was a productive day,” Kouyou said.  
   
“I’m glad we made good use of _your_ time,” Christine replied, nursing her heartbreak quietly to herself.  
   
Kouyou would never see it coming.  
   
~  
   
Christine left him the very next day.  
   
She did it via a two-minute phone call, too. If Christine wanted to drive her point back home, she did it very clearly. Kouyou had been dumbfounded, when he picked up her call in the midst of an important meeting with shareholders, ready to express his irritance at being disturbed, until he heard Christine’s disgusted tone of voice cutting him right off –  
   
_I’m breaking up with you._  
   
– and was rendered completely speechless at the manner in which he was being treated in, as if their six-year relationship had meant nothing to Christine at all. Kouyou wasn’t too sure how to define that feeling then of having been plainly stabbed in the chest; like a freshly sharpened dagger, twisting and turning at every crevice of his profusely bleeding heart, drawing out his pain, and then pulling out only to pierce right back in again, in a constant repetitive process, to ensure Kouyou’s heart remained broken for all eternity. His mind went a complete blank. His heart was blinded with enormous pain. And Christine’s every word hurt him like he’d never been hurt before.  
   
_Too caught up with work, neglected me_ , was one of the various pointers Christine had listed off the top of her head, in a loathsome voice, one that no longer carried any form of kindness for Kouyou.  
   
_Insensitive. Didn’t notice that I was unhappy. Didn’t bother reading between the lines. Did everything wrong. Cold. Selfish. Rude. Self-centered. Don’t deserve happiness. Unlikeable. No charm. Fake. Liar. Pathetic. Hateful. Deserve to be alone. Forever._  
   
_Definitely not a person that anyone can love._  
   
Kouyou hadn’t been able to continue the meeting with the shareholders after that.  
   
_Oh, and by the way, great aunt now hates you. Don’t bother coming to her party. Goodbye, Takashima Kouyou._  
   
~  
   
_Kouyou is calling…_  
   
“You won’t be coming in to work for the rest of the day?”  
   
With the abrupt snap of his fingers, the vice-president signaled for the chauffer to pull up to the sidewalk, indicating he’d reached his destination. Suzuki Akira eyed the rear view mirror briefly, slicking his hair back in a quick move, ensuring he looked at his best. He picked up the dark blue Tommy Hilfiger coat he had left on the seat next to him, swiftly put it on, and adjusted his collars immediately right after. It was rare that Akira wasn’t clothed in his usual business suit attire for work, and Akira liked to think he _did_ have some sense of style left – he simply didn’t have much opportunities to display it proudly. Today was the perfect opportunity to trade his regular suit in for something more… _trendy_ and casual from his wardrobe, seeing as he had taken the day off specially to attend a very important event – his father’s very last violin recital before he retired for real.  
   
“Is something wrong, Kouyou?”  
   
Still holding his phone to his ear in hand, Akira skillfully multi-tasked as he leaned over to whisper further instructions to the chauffeur, before dusting off the front of his pants, and easing himself closer to the door. Then, in one bold, confident move, the vice-president stepped out of the black Maserati he’d just been chauffeured in, looking _exactly_ the part of an upperclassman, one that held high status and worth in this society. Akira attracted a few gazes from curious, giggling schoolgirls as they passed him by, but the vice-president was too engrossed in his phone call with his boss cum best friend to care.  
   
“Christine… broke up with you?”  
   
Now _that_ was news. Kouyou’s devastated tone let Akira know there was reason to be concerned; the CEO was completely passive otherwise. Glancing to the Bvlgari watch on his wrist, Akira estimated he had about ten more minutes before he _really_ had to enter the concert hall for his father’s recital, and decided to give Kouyou a couple more minutes to air his grievances to his best friend.  
   
“I’m sure she didn’t mean what she said.”  
   
Akira’s eyes roamed his surroundings as he spoke, his forehead in tense creases as he digested the upset recount of Kouyou’s. He could spot plenty of people making their way into the direction of the concert hall, and it served to make him a little more anxious and jittery.  
   
…And that was when his eyes landed upon a more riveting sight.  
   
He found himself watching, from a distance, the back figure of an interesting-looking brunet, wondering what _exactly_ he was trying to do. The brunet had to be about a head shorter than Akira himself; something Akira already found cute _._ Another thing that caught his attention was how elaborately, and stylishly, the brunet was dressed. You don’t come across such cleverly layered fashion nowadays, but Akira always respected a well-dressed person when he saw one. A McQueen scarf paired with a black sweater and grey denim jeans? Very tasteful.  
   
There were a couple of stands nearby with flyers stuffed in them, and it was apparent that the brunet was intrigued with reading them. Was the brunet a fan of classical music, too? Or perhaps, theatre performances in general? Either way, the brunet was tipping desperately on his toes and struggling to grab for flyers at every level of the stand, clearly interested in knowing what some of the upcoming performances were.  
   
Akira couldn’t see his face, of course, but from what he could see from the brunet, he was already silently chuckling at how adorable the fun-sized brunet’s antics seemed. Someone _ought_ to help him reach for and gather all those flyers. How interesting. Akira wondered if he would see him later in his father’s recital. Then again, tickets to the internationally acclaimed violinist’s performances were highly expensive, and always coveted for. Not anyone could so easily be afforded an opportunity to attend Suzuki’s performance.  
   
“Yes, Kouyou, I’m listening. No, the recital hasn’t started yet. Yes, I’ll let you know when it does.”  
   
Kouyou sounded to be in bad shape, Akira noted, growing uneasy at the thought. He had never heard Kouyou sound so dejected before; being dumped so viciously must do things to a person. Akira made a mental note to take Kouyou out for a drink or two tomorrow, knowing his best friend probably needed a ton of emotional support after having lost a six-year relationship. Losing such a long-term relationship really would take a mental toll on a person… It was cause for worry.  
   
It was in the bustle of his thoughts about Kouyou that he almost missed the brunet walking off, barely catching the sight of the brunet’s side-view as he did so. He still couldn’t take a clear, good look at the brunet’s face, but he could see now that the brunet was holding a large sketchbook in hand, hugging it tightly to his chest. Was he an artist? Did he draw? Akira found himself pondering the many possibilities, wondering just what kind of person the brunet was.  
   
Damn, Akira really should have gone up to talk to him, at least.  
   
And then, just as the brunet rounded off the corner and disappeared behind the wall, Akira saw a sheet of paper fall right out of the brunet’s sketchbook, slipping right down to the floor. And the brunet hadn’t noticed at all!  
   
Akira’s eyes widened at the knowledge, and he was quickly sprinting for the piece of paper before the wind could take it away, wanting to deliver it back into the right hands as soon as possible.  
   
Except – Akira found his breath completely taken away as he lifted the sheet of paper up closer to his eyes, and he saw the most brilliantly designed piece of fashion design he’d ever lay his eyes upon.  
   
_Wow_.  
   
_This_ was no doubt runway fashion material. Then again, it would make complete sense if the brunet he’d just seen was a fashion major. He was so impeccably dressed; there was no other explanation for it. Had Akira just lay his eyes on the next Donatella Versace or Valentino Clemente?  
   
“Of course, Kouyou, I’m still here… Yeah, I’m listening…”  
   
Ah, shucks. The brunet was nowhere to be found. He must have left while Akira was too transfixed upon the masterpiece in his hands. Akira’s eyes scanned the sheet of paper for any hint that might clue him in onto the fashion designer’s identity, but there was nothing. Nil. Nada. Not a single contact detail in sight.  
   
Well, _except_ two abbreviated letters of a name signed off at the bottom.  
   
_M. T._  
   
Huh. Perhaps Akira might get to see him again one day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think life is just full of ironies and chance meetings and tons of passing bys. I guess I just wanted to illustrate that here. :>  
> I think I just wanted to emphasise their beginnings in this prequel, too.
> 
>  **1.** Yuu really is not a saint. ;) he loves the attention, he does enjoy the $$$ he gets, and he plays up his innocence as seduction to get what he wants lol.  
>  **2.** Christine wasn't the bad person that "broke" Kouyou. Kouyou was the one who changed and was at fault, lbr. He really was as bad as he described to Yuu about his past self. He cared more about his work and was an asshole about the kind of control/power he held over his partner, and that's why he's constantly learning and trying to improve upon himself, even now when he's already engaged with Yuu.  
>  **3.** I feel like I never really did elaborate more on Akira's "successful" violinist father +_+ so here's him turning up for his father's recital, and having a chance... "meeting" with Takanori ;)  
>  **4.** I think you guys were glad to know more about Takanori's past in the previous chapter, as well as see Yutaka act all nervous like a cute schoolboy crushing on Yuu lol.
> 
> Anyway, this concludes the end of SA until I create another side-story lol. +_+ comments are soo loved, I want to know what you guys think! see you guuuys!
> 
>  **/shameless plug time/** so, a friend created Instagrams for [SA Yuu](http://www.instagram.com/sugaraoixox) and [SA Takanori](http://www.instagram.com/pradabitchxo) on a whim, and now I'm in charge of the SA Yuu account, and she's in charge of the SA Taka one. XD It's nothing serious, just something we're having fun with, and I consider it a different SA universe (yes, a universe within a universe XD) from the fic. so this fic will have its own path, just in case you get confused. I'm not much into RP, but if you're ever curious what goes on in the mundane SA Yuu life (being pampered by Kouyou, duuh), you can follow the account! Feel free to interact with SA Yuu whenever he updates. ;) follow Taka too!
> 
> Also, I snapchatted a lot during my summer trip in Japan, so I compiled all my snaplogs and made them into... vlog-style videos? XD in case you're interested, [here is the playlist ](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLt1mUiJ8gI4IavoiCixb8rrh0szWXLfka)of my videos. I gave live reports in video **#2** and **#4** which I made right after the gazette lives I attended, so if that's something you think you might be interested in, do give me a watch ^_^ (boy that sounds really weird. XD)


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